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March 17, 2025

Hundreds of Thousands Rally in Serbia Against Government Corruption
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In Serbia, hundreds of thousands of protesters flooded the streets of
the capital Belgrade on Saturday to demand justice for 15 people killed
in the northern city of Novi Sad last November when a train station roof
collapsed on them. The disaster triggered months of anti-government
rallies calling on President Aleksandar Vučić to resign, amid
accusations of widespread negligence and corruption. The student-led
protests have swelled to include teachers, farmers and workers.

Kristina Petrović: "We are waiting for authorities to be held
accountable for what happened in Novi Sad, as we believe it is all about
the irresponsibility of the state bodies."

Aleksa Cvetanović: "Today we will demonstrate our dissent to show how
many people will come out to show what we are striving for: for a normal
state, a state of law, without corruption, lying, media pressures,
persecutions, expulsions, unjust sentencing, etc."

Serbia's government denied reports from rights groups that police
deployed a military-grade sonic weapon against protesters. Footage from
Saturday's rally shows a sudden noise directed at protesters triggered
panic and a brief stampede.


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