Vladimir Arsenijević attacked in Belgrade ahead of Srebrenica commemoration

Writer and festival director Vladimir Arsenijević was assaulted by a group of around twenty hooligans in Belgrade while preparations were under way for a commemoration of the Srebrenica genocide. The attackers seized his phone, vandalised the planned memorial site under Brankova Bridge and threatened him, prompting organizers to cancel the ceremony for security reasons.

Civil‑society groups, including the Serbian PEN centre and the Serbian Literary Society, condemned the violence as linked to ongoing denial of the genocide. Police detained several of the assailants but later released them. In a subsequent interview, Arsenijević described himself as non‑violent, recounted past experiences of street attacks, and argued that such hooliganism is fueled by ultra‑right ideologies targeting young men.

The incident has sparked calls for prosecution of the perpetrators and renewed debate over the handling of historical memory in Serbia.