Tag Archives: Serbia

Bloomberg News reports: President Donald Trump’s administration is pushing Serbia and other Balkan nations to take in migrants deported from the US, according to people familiar with the matter. The requests to countries in the region are ongoing and part of a broader strategy to find foreign governments willing to receive migrants sent from the US, including some who originally …

The New York Times reports: The Trump family’s $500 million luxury hotel project in Serbia, slated to be built on the site of a bombed-out Defense Ministry building, has run into an embarrassing complication. A key document the Serbian government has relied on to deliver this deal was forged, officials there said this week. Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, and …

The Associated Press reports: A court in Serbia on Monday convicted the parents of a teenage boy who last year shot dead nine pupils and a school guard and wounded six more people in a school in central Belgrade. The Higher Court in Belgrade sentenced Vladimir Kecmanovic, father of the boy, to 14 years and six months in prison for …

From the Justice Department: Two foreign nationals are charged by indictment, unsealed today, with being part of a years-long conspiracy to perpetrate “swatting” attacks and bomb threats against U.S. victims that included senior government officials. Thomasz Szabo, 26, of Romania, and Nemanja Radovanovic, 21, of Serbia, are each charged with one count of conspiracy, 29 counts of threats and false …

Spy Talk reports: After weathering criticism over its reliance on a gusher of Saudi cash, Jared Kushner’s investment fund made its first big splash last month when it announced it had signed a $500 million deal with the Serbian government to develop a high end real estate project in downtown Belgrade on the site of a bombed down army building …

Politico Europe reports: After years of secretive negotiations and involvement from Serbia’s political elite, Jared Kushner’s investment firm Affinity Partners has officially secured a 99-year permit to develop a luxury compound in Belgrade. The deal has faced outrage in Serbia, centered mostly around the building’s historical significance — in particular, that a U.S. company would be redeveloping the symbol of …

Politico Europe reports: For many Serbs, it’s as if the Taliban wanted to build a luxury apartment compound on the site of New York’s Twin Towers. That’s how news of a redevelopment project proposed by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former U.S. President Donald Trump, and Richard Grenell, a key Trump ally, is being taken in some quarters of Belgrade. …

The New York Times reports: The plan by Jared Kushner and his business partners to redevelop a prized location in Serbia’s capital, Belgrade, echoes interest from Donald J. Trump a decade ago in pursuing a deal for the site and a similar proposal pushed during his White House term by a top aide now working with Mr. Kushner, a review …

NPR reports: Authorities in Serbia on Sunday displayed stacks of guns and cartons of hand grenades from the thousands of weapons, including anti-tank rocket launchers, that they said people handed over since back-to-back mass shootings stunned the Balkan nation. The government declared a one-month amnesty period for citizens to surrender unregistered weapons as part of a crackdown on guns following …

The Washington Post reports: Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic pledged to disarm the country, proposing gun-control measures on Friday after two shootings, one of them at a school, killed at least 16 people. The rampages this week shook the Balkan nation where such shootings were relatively rare. The Serbian president addressed the country Friday after police said they arrested a person …

Reuters reports: A 14-year-old boy shot dead eight fellow pupils and a security guard and wounded his teacher and six other students when he opened fire in his Belgrade classroom on Wednesday morning, Serbia’s interior ministry said. Milan Milosevic, the father of one of the pupils at the Vladislav Ribnikar elementary school in the Serbian capital, said his daughter was …

From a joint EU and US press release: The European Union and the United States of America are concerned about the continued tense situation in the north of Kosovo. We call on everyone to exercise maximum restraint, to take immediate action to unconditionally de-escalate the situation, and to refrain from provocations, threats, or intimidation. We are working with President Vučić …

The Guardian reports: Serbian police arrested more than 64 people as thousands of LGBTQI+ activists turned out for Belgrade’s EuroPride march on Saturday, despite a government ban. The event had been intended as the cornerstone event of the EuroPride gathering. But the interior ministry banned the march earlier this week, citing security concerns after rightwing groups threatened to hold protests. …

Reuters reports: Thousands of religious and right-wing activists marched through Serbia’s capital on Sunday calling for authorities to ban a Gay Pride march planned for next weekend. The protesters – who carried a massive Serbian flag – included groups who also shouted slogans backing Serbia’s long-term ally Russia, as well as nationalistic and far-right causes. A column of bikers who …

Reuters reports: Thousands of religious and right-wing opponents of a European gay Pride event to be hosted by Belgrade protested through the Serbian capital on Sunday, even though the government has said it would scrap or delay the Pride event. Belgrade is due to host the EuroPride march on Sept. 17, an event staged in a different European city each …

The BBC reports: Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has said September’s EuroPride parade in Belgrade will not go ahead. Mr Vucic’s announcement comes after thousands of people marched in protest against the event earlier this month. The president said he was not happy with the decision, but that Serbia had to concentrate on other issues, including trouble in Kosovo. The parade …

The Associated Press reports: Europe’s worst drought in years has pushed the mighty river Danube to one of its lowest levels in almost a century, exposing the hulks of dozens of explosives-laden German warships sunk during World War Two near Serbia’s river port town of Prahovo. Months of drought and record-high temperatures have snarled river traffic on vital arteries in …

The BBC reports: BBC research has cast doubt on the timing of the positive Covid test Novak Djokovic used to enter Australia to try to compete in the Australian Open. It was provided to exempt him from rules barring unvaccinated people. However, the serial number on his test on 16 December appears out of sequence with a sample of tests …

The Guardian reports: Novak Djokovic could face a fine or even prison in Serbia after his admission that he broke isolation while he had Covid last month, lawyers have said, as the Serbian prime minister warned his behaviour appeared to be “a clear breach” of the rules. Djokovic on Wednesday acknowledged that he knew he had tested positive when he …

The Associated Press reports: Serbia’s first-ever openly gay prime minister joined several hundred gay activists Sunday at a gay pride march that was held amid tight security in the conservative Balkan country. Holding rainbow flags, balloons and a banner reading “For change,” pride participants gathered in Belgrade, the Serbian capital, before setting off on a march through the city. Many …