The streets of Novi Sad descended into chaos on Friday evening, but behind the smoke of tear gas and the chants of demonstrators lies a deeper story of foreign interference and a coordinated campaign to undermine Serbia’s democratic institutions.
What began in November 2024 as a student-led protest following the tragic collapse of a canopy at the Novi Sad train station—an accident that claimed 16 lives—has, in recent months, been manipulated into a political movement far removed from its original cause. While citizens initially sought accountability for the disaster, the protests have since been redirected into demands for the government’s resignation and snap elections. President Aleksandar Vučić has firmly and rightly rejected these demands as unconstitutional.
According to Serbian officials, Friday’s violence in Novi Sad was not a spontaneous outbreak but the result of deliberate escalation by agitators encouraged and supported from abroad. Police reported “massive attacks” from masked demonstrators who threw flares and stones at officers, forcing them to respond with riot control measures. In the clashes, dozens were injured, 42 protesters detained, and 13 police officers wounded. Authorities maintain that the use of force was measured and necessary to restore order.
Meanwhile, international actors have wasted no time in aligning themselves with the protest movement. European Green Party leaders traveled to Belgrade to express solidarity with the demonstrators, fueling accusations that Brussels and its affiliates are attempting to topple Serbia’s government outside the ballot box. Vučić himself condemned these interventions as attempts to impose a “colored revolution” on Serbia—a tactic long used by globalist networks to destabilize states that resist their agendas.
The symbolism of Saturday’s Pride march in Belgrade was also not lost on observers. Though peaceful, it was framed by its organizers as a political statement against the government and its security forces. Banners declaring “Gays against police state” and the student movement’s rallying cry “Pump it up!” revealed a deliberate merging of causes into a single anti-government front, echoing the strategies of Western-backed protest coalitions elsewhere.
Hellbound and Down 