Tens of thousands of people took to anti-government protests in Serbia: all the details
Фото: Reuters
Large-scale protests and clashes between demonstrators and police took place in the Serbian capital, Belgrade. Demonstrators demanded the resignation of President Aleksandar Vučić and early national elections.
This is reported by Reuters .
The epicenter of the protests was Slavija Square in the center of Belgrade. Special police units in special equipment had previously blocked the approaches to the city hall building.
The first clashes began near the presidential administration and the adjacent park, where supporters of the current government have been gathering since March last year. The protesters were dominated by student youth. Participants in the action held posters with the inscriptions “Your hands are in blood” and “Students win.”
The confrontation between demonstrators and security forces later escalated. Law enforcement officers used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd.
Protesters blocked traffic on nearby streets, built barricades, and set fire to garbage cans and other improvised means to deter police.
People were injured and detained as a result of the clashes. Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic reported the detention of 23 active participants in the riots. He also said that several police officers were injured.
Official structures and independent observers published different data on the number of protest participants.
According to the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs, about 34,000 people gathered in the center of Belgrade. At the same time, the monitoring group “Archive of Public Assemblies” said that the number of participants in the action reached 100,000 people.
In parallel with the protests in Serbia, a scandal erupted around the country’s security forces. Investigative journalists published documents about the cooperation of Serbian intelligence with the Russian Federal Security Service.
The materials refer to joint testing of sound guns on animals, including dogs. According to the investigation, the Serbian authorities allegedly concealed the development of acoustic weapons for possible use against protesters.
Opposition politicians called for the creation of an international commission to investigate these facts.
The situation in Belgrade remains tense as of now. Police and armored vehicles continue to patrol the government quarter.
Recall that in March, a mass anti-government protest took place in the Czech capital Prague , in which at least 400,000 people were arrested. The protesters opposed the policies of the new government and accused the authorities of pressuring the media and curtailing democratic processes.
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