Serbia

(AP) --- As coronavirus cases surge globally, the COVID-19 deaths of two senior Serbian Orthodox Church clerics — one who died weeks after presiding over the funeral of the other — are raising questions about whether some religious institutions are doing enough to slow the spread of the virus.

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbian police detained 71 people after clashes during the fourth night of anti-government protests against the Serbian president that were initially sparked by his plans to reintroduce a coronavirus lockdown.

Fourteen policemen were injured in the rioting Friday evening when hundreds of right-wing demonstrators tried to storm the parliament building in downtown Belgrade, police director Vladimir Rebic said Saturday. Many demonstrators and several reporters were also injured in the protests.

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Police fired tear gas at hundreds of demonstrators who tried to storm Serbia’s parliament on Friday, the fourth night of protests against the Balkan country president’s increasingly authoritarian rule.

Demonstrators — who were defying a ban on mass gatherings amid a spike in virus infections — threw bottles, rocks and flares at the police guarding the domed parliament building in central Belgrade and removed the metal fences in front of it. Smoke rose above the entry stairway.

BELGRADE, July 9. /TASS/: Allegations, made by the Center for Euro-Atlantic Studies (CEAS) in Belgrade, that Russia is involved in riots in Belgrade are absurd, Russia Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko said Thursday.

"Although making absurd, ungrounded allegations against Russia is not a rarity for the CEAS, it is still surprising, how distorted the perception of reality could be in the ‘experts’ who managed to find a ‘Russian trace’ in riots in Serbia," the envoy tweeted.

BELGRADE (Reuters) - A group of opposition supporters stormed the Serbian parliament building in Belgrade on Tuesday in a protest against a lockdown planned for the capital this weekend to halt the spread of the coronavirus.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Tuesday evening that stricter measures including the lockdown of Belgrade over the weekend would be introduced because of the rising number of coronavirus infections.

Opponents blame the increase on the government and say people should not have to pay the price for another lockdown.

BELGRADE, June 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Serbian Defence Minister, Aleksandar Vulin, tested positive for COVID-19, the Defence Ministry said Saturday, in a press statement.

Vulin underwent a regular test, after having contact with one of the state secretaries in the Ministry of Defence, who was recently hospitalised due to COVID-19 infection, said the statement.

BELGRADE, June 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Coalition around the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), led by Serbian President, Aleksandar Vucic, achieved a landslide victory at the parliamentary elections on Sunday, according to the Republic Electoral Commission (RIK).

Preliminary results showed, the coalition around the SNS won 63.35 percent of votes, while smaller ruling coalition partner, Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), led by Foreign Minister, Ivica Dacic, collected 10.62 percent.

BELGRADE, June 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Serbians go to polls on Sunday to elect a new parliament in Europe’s first national election since coronavirus lockdowns took effect some three months ago, with the ruling conservatives seen winning a comfortable majority.

Polling stations will be equipped with face masks and hand sanitisers for the use of the country’s 5.5 million voters, many of whom are expected to skip voting – partly due to fears of becoming infected.

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia’s ruling populists are set to tighten their hold on power in a Sunday parliamentary election held amid concerns over the spread of the coronavirus in the Balkan country and a partial boycott by the opposition.

Nearly 6.6 million voters are eligible to cast ballots for the 250-member parliament and local authorities.

BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia will hold Europe’s first national election on Sunday since the continent went into coronavirus lockdown three months ago, with protective masks made available to voters at polling stations to guard against the spread of COVID-19.

President Aleksandar Vucic’s conservative ruling Serbian Progressive Party is tipped to win more than 50% of votes, opinion polls show, buoyed by voters’ perception that the government has handled the pandemic effectively and by state handouts to soften its economic impact.