Thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets of Novi Sad, Serbia, on September 5, 2025, demanding free elections and justice, only to be met with a forceful police crackdown that left the city’s air thick with tear gas and the nation’s political tensions at a fever pitch. The protest, led by university students and supported by a broad swath of civil society, marks the latest and most dramatic chapter in a wave of unrest that has swept Serbia since the fatal collapse of the city’s train station roof last November—a tragedy that claimed 16 lives and ignited a firestorm over alleged state corruption and negligence.
According to the Associated Press, the demonstration began peacefully, with several thousand people rallying late into the night. Protesters carried banners emblazoned with urgent demands: “Students have one urgent demand: Call elections.” Their voices echoed through the city as they chanted, “We want elections,” and “Vucic leave,” vowing to defend the autonomy of the university and to hold those in power accountable for what many see as a preventable disaster.
But the evening soon descended into chaos. Baton-wielding riot police, reinforced by anti-riot vehicles, charged into the crowd, unleashing volleys of tear gas, stun grenades, and flares to disperse the protesters. The city’s streets were engulfed in smoke as police chased demonstrators away from the university campus, the epicenter of the protest. In the aftermath, ambulances wove through Novi Sad’s streets, though there were no immediate reports of civilian injuries. The interior minister, Ivica Dacic, told state-run RTS television that 42 people had been detained, and 13 police officers were injured in what he described as a “massive and brutal attack” by protesters.
The crackdown wasn’t limited to protesters. Police reportedly ordered some demonstrators and journalists to lay flat on the street in handcuffs, demanding they identify themselves. This heavy-handed approach, which has become increasingly common in recent months, reflects what many observers describe as a hardening of President Aleksandar Vucic’s response to dissent.
Vucic, who has long touted his ambition to bring Serbia into the European Union, was quick to lash out at the demonstrators, branding them “cowards and scum” and accusing them of being terrorists incited by Western governments. “Police were just doing their job and they did it strictly professionally,” Vucic insisted, according to AP. He offered no evidence for his claims that the protests were orchestrated from abroad, a refrain that has drawn skepticism both domestically and internationally.
The roots of the unrest stretch back to November 2024, when the concrete canopy at Novi Sad’s train station collapsed, killing 16 people. The disaster became a rallying point for critics of the government, who allege that entrenched corruption and official negligence were to blame. Calls for a transparent investigation quickly morphed into demands for snap elections, free media, and criminal prosecutions against those responsible for the tragedy. The government’s response has been to tighten its grip on power: dozens of university professors, deans, and high school teachers have been dismissed in recent months for supporting the student protests, replaced by loyalists to Vucic’s ruling party.
The September 5 protest focused on a university building that had been taken over by Vucic’s supporters and police more than a week earlier. Shielded riot officers initially guarded the building, but as the crowd swelled, reinforcements arrived and the confrontation escalated. The protesters’ defiance was palpable, with students and their allies pledging to defend the independence of academic institutions—a cause that has resonated across the country.
Yet the government has shown little inclination to compromise. Vucic has repeatedly refused to schedule the snap parliamentary vote demanded by demonstrators, dismissing their concerns and doubling down on his allegations of foreign interference. “He described the protesters as ‘cowards and scum,’ while also lashing out at a group of European politicians present at the rally,” AP reports. The president’s rhetoric has only deepened the divide between his administration and the protest movement.
The events in Novi Sad have also drawn international attention, with human rights organizations and foreign governments expressing alarm over the Serbian authorities’ use of force. “Scores of students and other people have been jailed and beaten during the protests, drawing international criticism of Vucic’s government,” AP notes. The scale and persistence of the demonstrations have highlighted the growing frustration among young Serbians, many of whom see their country’s democratic institutions as under threat.
Adding to the sense of crisis, the protest occurred just days after Vucic returned from a high-profile gathering in China, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of China, North Korea, Belarus, and Iran. The timing has fueled speculation that Vucic is seeking to bolster his international alliances as pressure mounts at home.
For many in Serbia, the stakes could hardly be higher. The train station collapse remains a symbol of what protesters say is a broader pattern of official mismanagement and disregard for public safety. As one protester’s banner succinctly put it, “Students have one urgent demand: Call elections.” Their message is clear: without accountability and free elections, the cycle of tragedy and repression will continue.
Despite the government’s attempts to quell dissent, the student-led movement shows no signs of backing down. University students have emerged as a key force behind the ongoing protests, their calls for free media and government accountability resonating far beyond the walls of academia. The dismissals of supportive professors and teachers have only galvanized the movement, with many seeing the crackdown as further evidence of the government’s intolerance for dissent.
The events of September 5 have left Novi Sad—and Serbia as a whole—at a crossroads. The government’s refusal to engage with protesters’ demands, coupled with its increasingly aggressive tactics, has set the stage for a prolonged standoff. Whether Vucic’s administration will relent and call early elections, or whether the protests will be met with further repression, remains to be seen.
As the tear gas clears and the city returns to a wary calm, one thing is certain: the demand for justice and democracy in Serbia is not going away. The voices of Novi Sad’s students and their supporters have been heard around the world, and their struggle continues to shape the nation’s future.