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Violence in Novi Sad/ Students accuse government supporters of attack during protest

2026-02-17 18:19:03, Kosova & Bota CNA

Violence in Novi Sad/ Students accuse government supporters of attack during

At least three anti-government protesters were injured on the evening of February 16 in incidents in the center of Novi Sad, where, separated by police cordons, supporters of the government also protested at the same time.

Students who organized the protest against the Serbian Government accused government supporters of attacking them in front of the Serbian National Theater building.

They said that several men, dressed in black, kicked, pushed, and beat them, while the police initially did not react.

At that time, a solemn academy was being held inside the theater building on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Serbian national institute "Matica srpska".

The event was addressed by the leader of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party, Miloš Vu?evi?, and the patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Porfirije, while other officials were also present, including ministers and the mayor of the city of Novi Sad.

The event was held as anti-government protests in Serbia have continued for more than 15 months.

They began after an incident at the Novi Sad railway station, where 16 people lost their lives, in November 2024.

The protests began with calls for accountability, then continued with demands for extraordinary elections and the resignation of the government.

Several hundred supporters of the ruling party gathered at the entrance to the theater building.

Numerous police forces were stationed around them, preventing anti-government protesters from approaching them.

Witnesses told a Radio Free Europe journalist that, at one point, government supporters rushed toward a group of students and journalists in front of the theater.

"I don't know how it started, maybe they recognized them because they 'were not from their group'. I saw a boy being hit in the head, a girl being knocked to the ground and kicked. They beat them for a while. Then, the police started to intervene and escort the group that had been attacked to the other side of the cordon," said Igor from Novi Sad.

Anti-government students posted videos of parts of the attack on social media.

One of the videos was published on Instagram, with the caption: "Supporters of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) attacked our colleagues."

There has been no reaction from this party so far./REL