Police and protesters clash in Serbia as crowds demand president’s exit
Key takeaways
- Police fired teargas and stun grenades as they pushed back protesters further down the street.
- Many in the crowds wore badges with red hands reading “Your hands are bloody,” and banners reading “The students are winning”.
- Anti-government protests started after an awning collapsed at a railway station in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad on November 1, 2024.
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
Add ARY News on Google AAResize Police fired teargas and clashed with protesters in central Belgrade on Saturday, as tens of thousands gathered to demand early elections and an end to the more than decade-long rule of Serbia’s populist President Aleksandar Vucic.
People crowded into Slavija Square, one of the capital’s main junctions, in a fresh eruption of demonstrations that started a year and a half ago when a deadly roof collapse triggered a youth-led movement against alleged corruption and mismanagement.
Officers in riot gear cordoned off Belgrade city hall, about a kilometre away, before sporadic clashes broke out between protesters and police near the presidency building and outside a park where Vucic’s supporters have been camping since March last year.