Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Serbia’s capital Belgrade on March 15 in one of the country’s largest demonstrations in decades, with students, workers and farmers confronting riot police and government supporters.

Students and other protesters travelled to the Serbian capital in the latest of a months-long series of protests, triggered by a a deadly roof collapse at the railway station in Novi Sad that killed 15 people in November 2024. The incident fueled accusations of government corruption and mismanagement, escalating into a broad movement against President Aleksandar Vucic. 

The crowd was estimated at well over 100,000 people, with drone footage from Belgrade-based NGO CRTA showing people flocking to the centre on foot and filling the streets around Slavija Square. 

While the demonstration was mostly peaceful, tensions flared when police reported a car ramming into a column of protesters in a Belgrade suburb, injuring three people. Elsewhere, a student and a university lecturer were attacked by unidentified assailants. 

Ahead of the protest, the Serbian authorities said 13 people were detained overnight and early on March 15, including three men accused of vandalising tractors belonging to pro-Vucic farmers who had encircled Pionirski Park, where government supporters have been camped.

As of the evening of March 15, police forces in riot gear remained stationed in front of the Serbian parliament, while gendarmerie units were reportedly moving towards the Constitutional Court. The situation become increasingly tense during the evening, with some student organisations calling on their members to leave to avoid incidents. 

Many of the protesters traveled hundreds of miles by foot or bicycle to join the protest. They are calling for justice for the 15 people who died in the Novi Sad railway station disaster, as well as challenging alleged government corruption. 

Some opposition figures have drawn comparisons to the mass demonstrations that led to the ousting of former president Slobodan Milošević in 2000.

The government has responded by filing charges against 13 individuals over the railway station collapse. However, these measures have done little to placate the growing dissent. Prime Minister Milos Vucevic and two ministers have already resigned but this too failed to end the protests.

Outside Serbia, both the United Nations and the European Union have called for calm. The US embassy in Belgrade issued a security advisory, warning American citizens to avoid large gatherings. 

Meanwhile, Vucic has become increasingly critical of the protesters, accusing opposition groups of plotting violence, citing a video aired by state media allegedly showing individuals discussing an attack on the parliament.

The Serbian government has also denied accusations of corruption and negligence, instead accusing Western intelligence agencies of backing an effort to destabilise the country.