Authorities accuse Djilas of assault

SNS leader, Prime Minister Milos Vucevic and senior party official Belgrade City Investment Secretary Luka Petrovic said the SNS activists were assaulted with Petrovic claiming that Djilas threw the first punch.

Petrovic appeared on the pro-regime TV Pink early on Friday morning to say that Djilas punched him first and that his bodyguard then started hitting the group of young men who he called children. “Those children are 18, 19, 20 and they didn’t touch anyone, provoked no one. They were doing their party job,” he said. According to him, putting up posters (with the words Djilas Thief) is a normal and regular party activity. Petrovic said that Djilas thought he could scare the young men away. “No one is scared of Djilas and his thugs,” he said adding that the group of youths he was with defended themselves. The post included the SSP video of the confrontation which showed Djilas and his companion on the ground being kicked.

PM Vucevic claimed that Djilas, leader of the Party of Freedom and Justice (SSP), assaulted the SNS activists demonstrating that the opposition wants unrest and violence. He said there will be no civil war in Serbia nor any colored revolution. Vucevic wrote in an Instagram post that “ Djilas has long been a symbol of arrogance, violence and savagery, and the latest incident that was started by him personally has shown once again the true face of the anti-Serbian opposition”

The SPS echoed the claims that Djilas was to blame saying that this was an unpredented case of arrogance and violence in politics. “Can anyone imagine what would happen if President Aleksandar Vucic, PM Vucevic or Minister Ivica Dacic walked the streets with their security and attacked anyone putting up posters,” a statement said.