Police fired tear gas at anti- government protesters Thursday evening in at least two Serbian cities, including the capital Belgrade and the northern city of Novi Sad.
Anti-government protesters attacked the Novi Sad headquarters of the President Aleksandar Vucic’s ruling Serbian Progressive Party, or SNS, smearning it with red paint and smashing windows.
The police or Vucic’s supporters, who have guarded the office for months, where nowhere to be seen, AP news agency reported.
Police in full riot gear later cordoned off several blocks in the center of Novi Sad, Serbia’s second biggest city, and used tear gas to disperse the protesters.
In Belgrade, hundreds of protesters and SNS supporters threw flares and firecrackers at each other on one of the city’s main boulevards.
Earlier in the evening, anti-government protesters had headed towards SNS offices but were stopped by a heavy riot police deployment.
At least five police officers were injured on Thursday evening and 14 protesters were arrested, Serbia’s interior ministry said, according to AFP news agency.
Serbia has seen several days of violence and clashes between the pro- and anti-government supporters.
Interior Minister Ivica Dacic said that protesters had gathered at some 90 locations across the country on Wednesday evening. Nearly 50 protesters were arrested on Wednesday and around 80 civilians and 30 riot police were injured, he said.
Serbia seen months of student-led protests against corruption
It is the latest escalation of thestudent-led demonstrations against Vucic’s government that have gripped Serbia since November 2024. These were initially triggered by the collapse of a railway station roof in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people, and was widely blamed on the country’s corruption.
The protesters are now demanding that Vucic call an early election.
Vucic has led the Balkan nation for than a decade as both prime minister and president. Under his leadership, Serbia has become increasingly authoritarian and corruption has flourished. Serbia ranks 105 out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s 2024 corruption perception index.
Vucic said on Thursday evening that there “will be more arrests” and accused the protesters of inciting violence and of being “enemies of their own country.”
Serbia cracks down on dissent
The EU’s Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said on social media that the reports of violence in Serbia, which is a candidate for EU membership, were “deeply concerning”.
“Advancing on the EU path requires citizens can express their views freely and journalists can report without intimidation or attacks,” Kos posted.
A group of UN human rights experts in August noted a “troubling pattern of repression” in the government’s response to the protests.
“Peaceful demonstrators have reportedly faced intimidation, physical attacks, surveillance, and arrests, often without legal justification,” the UN’s human rights body OHCHR, said.
Edited by: Zac Crellin
