© N1 Serbia via AP Photo
The fiercest standoff took place on Wednesday in the city of Novi Sad, where protesters gathered around the office of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). The party's supporters and protesters threw flares and other objects at each other, with demonstrators also smashing the building's windows.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that 64 people were injured at the premises of SNS in Novi Sad alone. He claimed that the protesters "approached from the rear with sticks, cannon shots, [and] attacked," adding that the pro-government activists "will not retreat, they opposed the beaters and blockaders" whom he called "thugs."
The president added that 16 police officers who intervened were also injured while accusing unnamed foreign powers of orchestrating the unrest. "Persons who violated the law will be apprehended... Tonight, we have averted a catastrophic scenario planned by someone from abroad," he said.
The opposition Move-Change movement, however, accused pro-government activists of attacking protesters with pyrotechnic devices.
Similar scenes unfolded in the capital city of Belgrade, where riot police deployed tear gas to disperse protesters near a park by the parliament building. Demonstrators were blocked from advancing further toward the SNS offices.
Clashes were also reported in Kraljevo, Kragujevac, Nis, and Cacak, with police moving to separate opposing sides in several towns.
The protests were ignited in November after a concrete canopy at the newly renovated railway station in Novi Sad collapsed, killing 16 people, with protesters - which were mainly students - accusing the government of corruption and cover-up. The demands later extended to educational reforms and holding snap parliamentary elections.
Vucic has on several occasions labeled the protesters "terrorists" who are seeking to "bring down the state," suggesting they have been acting under foreign influence.
Several Serbian ministers, including Prime Minister Milos Vucevic, resigned in the wake of the unrest. The government has published documents related to the canopy collapse.
I do hope that the people of europe realise just who their true enemy is, because it isn't the neighbours next door. Things have come to a head because of laws being passed by people on the make who then want to rule over you. One corrupt deal after another isn't good for long term planning. It will never end well, no matter what. The people of Ukraine are slowly coming to realise this.
The time has never been so good for the Serbian people to get some recognition and right a few wrongs. Last time around the Russian admin couldn't help them against nato attacks. How times have changed.