(MENAFN) Reports indicate that clashes have erupted across Serbia between anti-government demonstrators and ruling party supporters, leaving dozens injured. The unrest has persisted for months, fueled by demands for early parliamentary elections and accountability following a deadly railway station canopy collapse last year.

The most intense confrontation occurred Wednesday in Novi Sad, where protesters gathered near the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) headquarters. Both sides reportedly threw flares and other objects, and demonstrators smashed windows of the party building.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic stated that 64 people were injured at the SNS premises in Novi Sad alone. He claimed that the protesters “approached from the rear with sticks, cannon shots, [and] attacked,” adding that pro-government supporters “will not retreat, they opposed the beaters and blockaders” whom he labeled “thugs.”

The president also reported that 16 police officers were injured during the intervention and accused unidentified foreign powers of instigating 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, meanwhile, accused pro-government activists of targeting protesters with pyrotechnic devices.

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