V005-SERBIA NUEVAS PROTESTAS

Anti-government protesters vandalised the offices of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in the northern city of Novi Sad on Thursday (August 14) as others clashed with police and SNS supporters in the capital, Belgrade.

Violent unrest on Wednesday (August 13) left dozens injured.

In Belgrade on Thursday, hundreds of protesters and SNS supporters threw flares and firecrackers at each other on one of the city's main boulevards.

Police in full riot gear charged the anti-government protesters and used tear gas to force them to leave the area, a Reuters witness said.

In Novi Sad, Serbia's second-largest city, police and SNS supporters loyal to populist President Aleksandar Vucic were absent as dozens of anti-government protesters smashed the windows of the party's offices, threw out furniture and SNS paraphernalia, and splashed paint across the entrance.

"He's gone," protesters chanted in unison, referring to Vucic's 13-year-long rule.

Police in full riot gear later cordoned off several blocks in Novi Sad's city centre and used tear gas to disperse the crowd.

Daily protests across Serbia, sparked by the deaths of 16 people when the roof of a renovated railway station in Novi Sad collapsed last November, have rattled the popularity of Vucic and the SNS.

Interior Minister Ivica Dacic accused protesters of attacking police in Novi Sad and Belgrade, and towns of Pancevo and Sabac.

At least five police officers were injured, he said.

In a live broadcast, the Belgrade-based N1 TV showed at least five protesters being detained by police.

Vucic pledged more arrests after the protests.

The opposition Party of Freedom and Justice said that Pedja Mitrovic, its parliamentary deputy, was injured during the protests and hospitalised.

Similar protests were held in towns across the country.

Earlier on Thursday, Dacic said that 27 police officers and around 80 civilians were injured in Wednesday’s clashes, and 47 people had been detained.

Protesters have blamed corruption for the Novi Sad railway station disaster and are demanding early elections in hopes of ousting Vucic and his party.

Students, opposition groups, and anti-corruption watchdogs have accused Vucic and his allies of ties to organized crime, using violence against political rivals, and suppressing media freedoms—allegations they deny.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

BELGRADE, SERBIA (AUGUST 14, 2025) (REUTERS – Access all) (NIGHT SHOTS)

1. VARIOUS OF SNS (SERBIAN PROGRESSIVE PARTY) SUPPORTERS ON ONE SIDE OF POLICE CORDON, CHANTING SLOGANS SUPPORTING PRESIDENT ALEKSANDAR VUCIC, INSULTING ANTI-GOVERNMENT PROTESTERS

2. VARIOUS OF ANTI-GOVERNMENT PROTESTERS CHANTING, BOOING POLICE

3. SNS SUPPORTERS THROWING PYROTECHNICS AT ANTI-GOVERMENT SUPPORTERS, RUNNING IN STREETS

4. VARIOUS OF SNS SUPPORTERS FIRING FIREWORKS AT ANTI-GOVERMENT SUPPORTERS

5. VARIOUS OF ANTI-GOVERNMENT PROTESTERS THROWING STONES AND BOTTLES AT POLICE

6. POLICE WITH RAISED SHIELDS MOVING TOWARDS PROTESTERS, PROTESTERS BOOING, THROWING OBJECTS AND FIRECRACKERS AT POLICE, SMOKE RISING

7. VARIOUS OF POLICE

8. OFFICER ADJUSTING WEAPON

9. PROTESTERS MARCHING

10. POLICE FIRING SMOKE GRENADES

11. SMOKE BOMBS LANDING NEAR POLICE

12. POLICE STANDING WITH SHIELDS RAISED

13. PROTESTERS THROWING SMOKE BOMBS AT POLICE