{"id":162418,"date":"2025-02-03T00:09:53","date_gmt":"2025-02-02T22:09:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/?p=162418"},"modified":"2025-02-03T09:32:49","modified_gmt":"2025-02-03T07:32:49","slug":"u-s-media-on-protests-nothing-like-this-has-been-seen-in-the-balkans-vucic-government-faces-its-biggest-challenge-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/u-s-media-on-protests-nothing-like-this-has-been-seen-in-the-balkans-vucic-government-faces-its-biggest-challenge-yet\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. MEDIA ON PROTESTS: Nothing like this has been seen in the Balkans, Vu\u010di\u0107\u2019 government faces its biggest challenge yet!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

“Serbia has been shaken by mass protests<\/strong> for months as citizens demand justice and accountability for the tragedy at the Novi Sad Railway Station, which claimed 15 lives<\/strong>,” writes Fox News<\/strong> about the current situation in Serbia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fox News adds that for nearly three months<\/strong>, tens of thousands of people<\/strong> have been marching<\/strong>, demanding the criminal prosecution of those responsible<\/strong>, recalling that the accident occurred on November 1 of last year<\/strong>, when a canopy at the recently renovated railway station collapsed<\/strong>, a project carried out by two Chinese companies<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, a general strike<\/strong> was organized in Serbia, along with a 24-hour blockade of Autokomanda in Belgrade<\/strong> in response to the disaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I have worked in the Balkans for 30 years, and I have never seen anything like this,” Tanja Domi<\/strong>, a professor at Columbia University\u2019s Harriman Institute<\/strong>, told Fox News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the protests show no signs of stopping<\/strong>, Serbian Prime Minister Milo\u0161 Vu\u010devi\u0107<\/strong> and the Mayor of Novi Sad, the city where the tragedy occurred, recently resigned<\/strong>, Fox News reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Vu\u010devi\u0107\u2019s resignation has not quelled the demonstrations<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The prime minister\u2019s resignation is simply not enough<\/strong>,” Helena Ivanov<\/strong>, senior research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society<\/strong>, told Fox News Digital<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ivanov notes that demonstrators, led by students, have clear demands<\/strong>, including the publication of all documentation related to the railway station\u2019s reconstruction<\/strong> and the arrest of those responsible<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Initially, the Serbian government tried to ignore the protests<\/strong>, then resorted to force<\/strong>, and eventually pushed the narrative that the protests were instigated by foreign intelligence agencies<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“For the demonstrators, the collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy<\/strong> cannot be treated as an isolated incident. They see it as the ultimate proof of widespread negligence and deeply rooted, endemic corruption<\/strong> in the country, which ultimately led to this tragedy,” said Sini\u0161a Vukovi\u0107<\/strong>, director of the Global Policy Program at Johns Hopkins University<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The resignation of Prime Minister Vu\u010devi\u0107<\/strong> could mean one of two things: either a new government will be formed within 30 days, or snap elections will be called<\/strong>. Serbian President Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107<\/strong> addressed the nation, stating that he would decide within the next 10 days<\/strong> whether to proceed with forming a new government or holding elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This is one of the biggest challenges Vu\u010di\u0107 and his party have faced in their 13 years in power<\/strong>,” added Ivanov.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko \u0110uri\u0107<\/strong> told Fox News Digital<\/strong> that Serbia’s commitment to stability, reform, and continuous growth remains unchanged<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fox News also reports that students have distanced themselves from opposition parties<\/strong>, which lack broad public support<\/strong> and are generally seen as weak and ineffective<\/strong>. Students emphasize that this is their fight<\/strong> and that they will not allow opposition parties to interfere<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MORE TOPICS:<\/mark><\/h4>\n\n\n\n