In cities across Serbia, including Belgrade, Novi Sad, Šabac, and Kruševac, road blockades have been organized following calls from student and citizens’ assemblies. Some blockades are ongoing while others may recur tonight, as reported by the Beta agency.

In response, police have detained and arrested several participants from various locations, including minors, students, and professors.

The Misdemeanor Court in Belgrade reported that a total of 40 individuals were detained today; two have been convicted while one was acquitted.

The Court stressed to Injsader that the verdicts are not final, and standard legal proceedings will be initiated for the remaining detainees, according to announcements made by the television station at 16:44.

Meanwhile, several hundred citizens blocked the intersection near Fontana in New Belgrade again tonight.

Approaches to this intersection are obstructed by containers, and participants are protesting with whistles and vuvuzelas, demanding the release of those who have been arrested and calling for early parliamentary elections.

Currently, the blockade is peaceful, and there are no uniformed police officers present in that area.

Following the students’ call, residents of Šabac began a blockade at the intersection near the library and museum starting at 19:30 PM.

They stated their intent to persist in supporting students’ demands, promising to march through the city until midnight, creating noise with whistles and blocking multiple roundabouts, as reported by Radio Television of Serbia (RTS).

The crowd first took 16 minutes to honor the victims in Novi Sad, while police secured the access points to the blocked intersection, as they had previously.

In Kruševac, there is a group intermittently blocking the pedestrian crossing at Fontana, where citizens are making their protest known by continuously crossing.

The call for the blockade, as in prior days, was disseminated by the Citizens’ Assembly through social media, and the protest is continuing without incidents.

At 19:00, citizens also blockaded Radomir Putnik Square in Kragujevac’s city center and the intersection on Glavna Street near the church.

This blockade was organized by a citizens’ assembly, with demonstrators arriving from various neighborhoods; police have been present and no incidents have been reported.

A group of citizens blocked some access areas in Valjevo tonight, initially gathering on Vojvode Živojin Mišić Street leading towards Šabac.

During the day, they intermittently blocked this route by crossing the pedestrian crossing until police intervened, filing misdemeanor charges and detaining four individuals.

There is also a blockade in Smederevo this evening, where members of the Citizens’ Assembly gathered at Gurman, following an earlier incident involving a taxi breaking through a blockade.

They later returned to Karađorđeva Street in front of the Cultural Center.

In Zaječar, citizens are expressing civil disobedience by repeatedly crossing pedestrian crossings in groups.

RFE/RL: Citizens began establishing new roadblocks in the early afternoon

New roadblocks were initiated by citizens in Serbia early in the afternoon after most protest blockades were removed by police during the morning, resulting in dozens of arrests, as reported by Radio Free Europe (RFE).

Students and citizens blocked the intersection of Bulevar kralja Aleksandra and Ruzveltova in the afternoon, in front of the technical faculties in Belgrade.

The rally is being secured by traffic police, and there are currently no members of the gendarmerie present.

The crowd brought benches, chairs, and even a coat hanger into the street at the blocked intersection of Beogradska and Bulevar kralja Aleksandra.

Ustanička Street in the Konjarnik neighborhood of Belgrade near the bus stops for routes 31 and 17 is also blocked, causing traffic disruptions in that area, as reported by N1.

Citizens briefly blocked Republic Square in the afternoon and later marched to the Stari Grad Police Station. Police created a cordon in front of the station and pushed demonstrators onto the sidewalk as reinforcements arrived.

Citizens gathered at the police station due to concerns regarding an individual detained earlier that day.

They assembled shortly after 15:00 at the intersection near the Army Headquarters, close to Republic Square. Gendarmerie officers soon arrived and directed the demonstrators off the roadway. According to N1 television reports, police checked IDs and detained several protesters.

A blockade is underway at the Misdemeanor Court in Novi Sad, about eighty kilometers north of Belgrade, due to arrests made earlier in the morning.

After the interrogation of one detainee concludes, students plan to move to the intersection near Futoška pijaca, where another blockade is scheduled, and where individuals have already begun to gather.

In Niš, a southeastern Serbian city, citizens have started to assemble again at the roundabout near the Delta shopping center, according to the Niš portal Južne vesti.

Earlier, police in riot gear removed most protest blockades that had been in effect since the early morning hours in western Serbia, along the Užice-Zlatibor main road leading to Montenegro.

Throughout the day, police acted to dismantle various protest blockades, with no major incidents noted as demonstrators voluntarily moved from the roadways to the sidewalks when law enforcement arrived.

On the prior day, students called for a “total blockade of Serbia due to police brutality.”

This call followed police actions during which nearly 80 students and anti-government protesters were arrested across several cities on the night of July 3-4.

Students accused law enforcement of using excessive force in the dismantling of ongoing blockades, which were demanding early elections among other requests.

“Mobile blockades”

Citizens and students blocking the intersection near the Faculty of Law in downtown Belgrade since 7 a.m. moved from the roadway as police arrived.

After officers removed metal fences and containers, the protesters relocated to continue their blockade, as reported by RFE.

They similarly fled from that spot upon police arrival, while blockades persisted at the technical faculties where police presence was minimal.

Other areas of Belgrade also saw demonstrators placing containers in the streets, prompting strong police responses to clear them.

“Every act of civil resistance is meaningful,” said one protester, Miodrag Jevtić, remarking that “crime has infiltrated every facet of society.”

Milijana Bailović noted that the blockades stemmed “from the authorities and their violence.”

“We have not sought violence; we are merely defending ourselves,” she emphasized.

Arrests and protests at police stations

A throng of demonstrators gathered in front of the New Belgrade Police Department due to the detention of students from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts (FDU).

Following hearings at the misdemeanor court, most detainees were released with charges against them.

Dean of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts, Miloš Pavlović, reported that eight students and staff members have been detained over the past 48 hours.

He issued a call for an end to the repression targeting students and staff at his faculty, stating, “Our institution is under significant pressure; our students feel unsafe.”

After blockade participants were arrested, citizens continued protests in front of the city center’s police station, where there was a police cordon present.

Some of the detained individuals had been released as well.

Several arrests occurred during intersection blockades in Zemun, although reports indicated minor verbal altercations between protest supporters and opponents, with no significant incidents.

Protest blockades were established this morning in Novi Sad, Niš, and other cities.

There, strong police forces accompanied demonstrators and dismantled blockades. Multiple arrests were reported in Novi Sad, where some were released after questioning.

Opposition MP Radivoje Jovović, previously arrested during protests, was released after spending a night in custody, facing charges of disturbing public order.

Additionally, the Faculty of Science and Mathematics in Novi Sad called for the release of two of its students.

Police Minister: We are efficient and non-violent

On July 4, Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dačić stated that police allowed gatherings at designated locations in Belgrade not critical to traffic flow, asserting that police action was carried out “without the use of excessive force.”

“Since this morning, police have been on high alert, setting priorities to ensure that all essential points in the city operate normally,” he told Pink television.

Dačić condemned the ongoing blockades, claiming they “disrupt normal life for all citizens and the city’s operations.”

He noted that during previous protests, law enforcement “resorted to using batons” at various sites, affirming that all instances are being documented.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that during the blockades across Serbia on the evening of July 3, over 600 individuals had their identification checked, with 19 brought to official police facilities.

Vučić: More police than protesters at blockades

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić remarked that during the “attempted blockades,” law enforcement maintained complete control, stating participants “stood no chance.”

He praised Minister Ivica Dačić, Police Director Dragan Vasiljević, and all police units across Serbia for their commendable and lawful engagement in a difficult role.

The Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade called on citizens to “refrain from impeding the right to free movement by obstructing public roads,” warning that police are authorized to implement “actions as prescribed by law.”

The Prosecutor’s Office further noted that noncompliance with these directives could lead to misdemeanor or criminal liability.

They also stated that, regarding the territory of Belgrade and the forecasted illegal actions by a group of citizens, both the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office and basic public prosecutor’s offices have increased their on-call duties to respond promptly.

Ombudsman representatives visited the detained individuals

On July 4, representatives from the Protector of Citizens, acting as the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture (NPT), visited 12 citizens arrested earlier in the day during protests and blockades.

“Visits took place at police stations in Stari Grad, Zemun, and Novi Beograd, providing insight into the records regarding those detained at the mentioned facilities over the last few days,” stated the release.

The visiting group included representatives of the Ombudsman and the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights (JUKOM).

Protest blockades across Serbian cities began following student calls for civil disobedience, stemming from protests in Belgrade on June 28.

They are demanding early elections, the removal of a protest camp from the city center that has become a focal point against the blockades, and the release of students detained during the June 28 demonstrations.

Mass protests and faculty blockades across the country started after the tragic collapse of the canopy at the Novi Sad Railway Station on November 1, which resulted in 16 fatalities, prompting citizens and students to demand accountability from authorities.

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