One of two people injured in a clash between a group of antifascists and nationalists in Lyon on Thursday evening has been declared brain-dead.

The 23-year-old nationalist activist, according to BFMTV, was taken to hospital with a head hematoma.

The Lyon public prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation for grievous bodily harm, though no charges have yet been filed.

The incident occurred around 6:40 p.m. Thursday (7:40 p.m. Greek time), when clashes broke out involving the collective Némésis, which was protesting a lecture by MEP Rima Hassan of La France Insoumise (France Unbowed).

Némésis is a feminist collective of young women from France and Switzerland and argues that crime is linked to immigration. Among other positions, it maintains that non-European migrants, particularly Muslims, are more likely to commit violence against women.

At the same time, antifascist groups organized a protest against a lecture by author Guillaume Ancel at Lyon-3 University. Ancel has written several books on military topics, and the event also featured a history professor speaking on “the denial of the right to war.”

Approximately 50 people were involved in the fighting.

The victim, identified as Quentin D., was a student of mathematics and economics and active in nationalist organizations. According to reports, he attempted to defend members of Némésis when he was attacked.

It appears that members of Némésis were initially assaulted and then scattered into nearby streets, where they were again confronted by antifascist activists. During the clash, the 23-year-old was knocked to the ground and reportedly kicked repeatedly in the head.

Although he initially got up and tried to leave, he soon collapsed. He was taken to hospital and placed in an induced coma. On Friday, it was announced that he had been declared brain-dead.

Némésis wrote on X that one of its activists was violently attacked by Hassan supporters and confirmed that it would file a legal complaint. Regarding the 23-year-old, the group’s president stated that he “sustained a strong blow to the head and, when he stood up, was bleeding from the head.”