By Bart Biesemans and Christian Levaux
ZAVENTEM, Belgium, March 18 (Reuters) – Ten years after coordinated bombings killed dozens of people at Brussels Airport and Maalbeek metro station, Walter Benjamin is not only battling the physical and mental impact but is also still fighting for a final payout for his injuries.
The 57-year-old was in the departure hall when three Islamic State militants arrived at the airport with explosive‑filled suitcases on March 22, 2016. Two died when their bombs detonated while the third one abandoned his device and fled.
Just over an hour later, another militant blew himself up at the metro station. The attackers killed 32 people on the day and wounded more than 300, including Benjamin.
“My leg was torn off … right in the middle of the knee,” he said.
MEMORIES OF EXPLOSIONS
He can no longer enter the airport without taking medication. He says the attackers destroyed his life.
“I can still smell the burned bodies,” Benjamin said. “You have to realise this was actually a war zone. People died, people were torn apart.”
Photographs from the weeks after the attack show him in a hospital bed with his daughter beside him and receiving a visit from King Philippe and Queen Mathilde.
A decade on, he continues his recovery, training on a treadmill several times a week.
As well as the physical rehabilitation, Benjamin is also still dealing with the administrative battle for a full payout. He has a stack of files accumulated over 10 years of dealing with insurers, medical assessments and official procedures.
“(It) still hasn’t been closed to this day,” he said. “Every day there’s something new that comes up … It weighs heavily on the mind.”
CEREMONIES TO MARK ANNIVERSARY
Benjamin has received initial payments from MSIG Europe, the insurer he said was handling his claim with Brussels Airport, but no final settlement has been reached yet.
MSIG Europe said: “Discussions are ongoing to reach a final settlement.”
His war pension, given to survivors of the attacks by the Belgian government, has also been sharply reduced, a decision he is contesting with his lawyer.
Life4Brussels, an organisation supporting survivors, said Benjamin’s story was not unique. Survivors face a fragmented and exhausting compensation process, causing some to abandon their claims altogether, it said.
Assuralia, the Belgian professional association of insurance companies, said in a statement that since 2016, insurers had paid out 88.2 million euros ($101.78 million) in compensation to victims.
A Belgian government spokesperson said the Commission for Financial Aid to Victims has separately so far paid 7.9 million euros ($9.11 million) to survivors of the attacks. Benjamin said he had also received sums from this fund.
Belgium will mark the 10th anniversary of the attacks with a series of ceremonies organised by the airport, Brussels transport operator MIVB and the government, working with victims’ associations, the prime minister’s office said.
Six men were convicted for the bombings in July 2023 and received sentences of 20 years to life.
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(Reporting by Bart Biesemans, Christian Levaux; Additional reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Alison Williams)
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