Serbian Police Clash with Anti-Government Protesters

Anti-government protests in Serbia escalated on Saturday (August 16), with police using teargas and crowd control vehicles to disperse demonstrators in Belgrade.

The unrest spread to several other towns following allegations of police brutality during recent demonstrations, including reports of a 25-year-old man seriously injured in Valjevo on Thursday (August 14) after being beaten by police, his father told the local Beta news agency.

Beta also reported that children aged 15 and 17 were among those arrested and beaten during a protest organised by the high school students.

Serbia’s interior ministry has denied the allegations of police brutality.

The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights has expressed concern about the ongoing events in Serbia, noting persistent human rights issues.

Months of protests across Serbia sparked by the deaths of 16 people when a roof on a renovated railway station in Novi Sad collapsed, have rattled President Aleksandar Vucic and his SNS party.

Protests have been mainly peaceful until Wednesday evening when 27 police officers and around 80 civilians were injured in clashes, and 47 people had been detained.

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