A German teenager who was viciously attacked while on a school trip has undergone major surgery to improve his recovery.

Daniel Ezzedine, 17, had been in Canterbury on a graduation break when he was assaulted in a gang attack in the city centre.

The youngster suffered horrific injuries and was airlifted in a serious condition to a London hospital, where doctors give him just a 30% chance of survival.

Fighting for his life, he was placed in an induced coma, and has remained in a serious condition in hospital for the 12 weeks that have passed since the shocking attack on June 6.

Last month, KentOnline reported that Daniel had regained consciousness and was able to recognise his family, but was still bed-bound and unable to speak.

But the teen has now undergone an operation in which a metal plate was inserted in his head, says Westgate resident Paul Johnson, who runs a fundraiser that is providing financial support to Daniel's family.

Mr Johnson, who visited Daniel in hospital last month, said: "His brother informed me the operation was successful.

"Hopefully in the next two to three weeks, it will be safe enough to transport Daniel back to Germany, where he will start to recover, hopefully to be able to walk and start talking again."

Daniel's mother, a non-EU citizen, had to wait three days to fly to the UK to see her son because of visa issues, which were eventually resolved by Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield and Home Secretary Sajid Javid.

His family have since been staying in accommodation near his hospital in south-east London, paid for by Mr Johnson's fundraiser, which has raised more than £15,000.

Daniel is the youngest of five brothers, and comes from Moenchengladbach in west Germany.

In a moving Facebook post earlier this month, Daniel's brother Bassam Ezzedin wrote in German: "Two months are over my little brother and this progress makes me proud to have you as a brother.

"You are a fighter, even the doctors are surprised and you have proven the opposite to everyone.

"Allah is great and stand by you and gave you strength.

"We all pray that you will be back with us soon and your beautiful smile will not be lost. I love you brother."

Eleven people have so far been arrested in connection with the incident. They have all have since been released on bail without charge.

But police say they are carrying out a "full and thorough" investigation, and are liaising with German authorities as they look into what happened.

DCI Chris Greenstreet, who is leading the investigation, said last month: "In the interests of providing the best possible service to the victim and in order to provide the strongest case to the Crown Prosecution Service, it is important that we carry out a full and thorough investigation.

"Since the serious assault we have arrested 11 people. All of those have been released on bail with strict bail conditions while we continue to investigate the incident.

"We have dedicated officers working on this case, which includes examining hours of CCTV footage and witness statements, as well as liaising with colleagues in Germany and the CPS, and we continue to work to establish what led up to the assault, identify the offenders and bring those responsible to justice."

To donate to the fundraiser, click here.

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