Serbia's populist president says lithium protests are part of a 'hybrid' warfare against his country
Serbia’s president has accused demonstrators who oppose a lithium mining project in the Balkan country of being part of a Western-backed “hybrid” warfare against his government and vowed to take strong legal action against those protesters who have blocked railway and road traffic in the capital a day earlier
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia’s president Sunday accused demonstrators who opposed a lithium mining project in the Balkan country of being part of a Western-backed “hybrid” warfare against his government and vowed to take strong legal action against those protesters who have blocked railway and road traffic in the capital a day earlier.
In one of the biggest protests in recent years, tens of thousands took to the streets in the capital, Belgrade, Saturday against lithium mining in Serbia, despite officials’ warnings of their alleged plot to unseat populist President Aleksandar Vučić and his government.
Some of the protesters later blocked tracks at two railway stations in the city, and briefly stopped traffic on a major highway. Riot police early Sunday pushed them out of the railway stations with their riot shields.
Interior Minister Ivica Dacic said 14 people have been brought in for questioning. Police are working to identify all the perpetrators who will face charges, he said.
