'I don't understand why': Manchester police officer assaulted in airport speaks to Sky News

Why?I just don't understand why.There was no need to punch me in the face.I mean, that felt like it was a targeted assault on myself.

This is PC Lydia Ward talking about this moment in July 2024 when she and colleagues tried to arrest a man at Manchester airport.And this is what happened.That punch broke her nose.What's the thing that really sticks in your mind about what happened on that day?

Just the pain of it.It really, really... was painful, that's the main thing that sticks in my mind, and the shock that it had happened and how frightened I was.You're never prepared for that, even though I know I'm a police officer and I have been in situations where I felt frightened before, never as much as in that moment.

Mohammed Faheer Amaz was convicted of the assault of PC Ward.Initially only a part of the video of that incident emerged, showing what the police did but not what led up to it.

It was really frustrating and there was an element of me being angry about that because I just wanted to scream, no that's not the full story and people obviously didn't know and the frustration is that Nobody else was there apart from the people in that video so no one else knows what happens but yet people are commenting on it and giving their opinions.

But that online commentary continued even when the full video of what happened to PC Ward was played in court.

It just felt like people were, you know, she's useless, she should have done more.Nothing prepares you for being punched in the face.Also with him holding a mobile phone and being punched in the face with an object, the shock and the fear.you have after that happening to you and I felt very upset at the time because I felt like that the videos of me had made those comments come to the forefront of should women be police officers which was upsetting to me and it is important that people know that Policing isn't about being a ninja warrior and being able to, you know, take people down.It's about showing empathy towards people in some of the worst days of their life.There's a place for women in policing in all manner of different roles and there is some women that, you know, are even better in them sort of situations than some men.

Accusations have come too about so -called two -tier policing.

It's frustrating because me, myself and anybody that I've worked with, we do not go out, you know, every day looking to target a certain group of people or anything like that.We just go out, we do our job.If you've done something wrong and you need arresting, then you need arresting and it doesn't matter what background you're from.

Was there ever a point where you thought of not going back to policing?

I think there was some frustration after it had happened, maybe a slight bit of anger.I felt like in this job you can't win.That's how it feels some days, you just can't win.You can never make the right decision because there's always going to be somebody to complain about something or say in hindsight you should have done this better.I think I'm different but I think...In some ways, yes, it probably will always have an impact on me that I'll always, when I go to attend an incident as a police officer, have in the back of my mind, OK, things can escalate, things can get out of control very fast and, you know, you're never actually safe.

But now, as a new mum, she has returned to the job, still with questions.

I want to understand, I would have liked to have understood why he did what he did.And I want him to understand how that, him doing that, impacted my life.Maybe for him to take some responsibility for what he's done, show some remorse and an apology.

And you've not had that?

I've not had that, no.