Antonio Megalizzi, a 28-year-old radio reporter from Trento, is in a coma after taking a bullet to the head, his girlfriend’s father told Italian news agency ANSA.
“From what I understand ... it is not possible to operate because of the position of the bullet, which reached the column at the base of the skull, near the spine,” Danilo Moresco said while on his way to the French city.
Megalizzi was one of 13 people injured when a lone gunman opened fire on Strasbourg’s famous Christmas market at around 8:00 pm local time on Tuesday.
Three people were killed in the attack.
Megalizzi was in Strasbourg to report on the latest session of the European Parliament for Europhonica, a radio station specialised in EU parliamentary news.
He was with two colleagues at the time of the attack.
The reporter was born in Calabria but grew up in northern Italy, according to local media.
Friends, colleagues and fellow journalists have posted tributes to Megalizzi on social media, many with the message “Forza Antonio” (stay strong, Antonio).
Hundreds of police soldiers and border agents in France continue to hunt 29-year-old Chérif Chekatt, the man suspected of the shooting.
A Strasbourg local, Chekatt was on a watchlist of religious extremists who present a potential threat to national security.
He is reported to have shouted “Allahu akbar” (God is greatest) as he opened fire, before escaping the scene in a taxi.
