Rob Hughes, 31, a British soccer player who was nearly killed in an attack by six fellow Britons in Greece four years ago is to return to Greece to testify in the case against the men he said assaulted him and left him near dead. He made a recovery from critical injuries after being told he might not walk again.
His mother campaigned for legislation in the European Parliament that gives victims greater health care benefits across the European Union.
The attack happened in 2008, in Malia, Crete, a hot spot for tourists and wild partying. With drinking legal outside in Greece, police there are often called to break up fights between drunks. Hughes was attacked by six men and hit on the head with a bottle.
His mother was called and told that he had 48 hours of live and that if he survived he would probably be paralyzed. After waking up, Hughes had lost all his memory from the last 10 years and was unable to walk or use his arms before physical therapy helped him. Hughes was a player for Oxford United by that time and football was his passion all his life.
After many surgeries on his brain and years of rehabilitation, he has returned to a normal life, including football, and signed a contract with another team. The defendants, who will stand trial in Greece, have claimed their innocence
BBC