The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS) condemns the attack on Jovana Ristić, a journalist with the Glas Šumadije news portal, and Nenad Simović, a journalist and editor with the LiKVidno portal, who were physically obstructed and prevented from reporting from a public gathering in the Ribnica neighbourhood during Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić’s visit to Kraljevo.
Ristić and Simović were duly accredited for the event and had their press credentials clearly displayed at all times. The journalists passed a police check and then another screening carried out by individuals who were not in uniform and had no visible identification.
While they were filming a report in the area designated for the gathering, an unidentified person grabbed the lens of Nenad Simović’s camera and demanded that the journalists stop filming. Shortly afterwards, several other men dressed in black T-shirts approached them, pushed them, held onto the camera and forced them to leave the event.
The journalists repeatedly showed their press credentials and event accreditations, but this did not stop the individuals from pushing them and obstructing them in the performance of their professional duties. Due to the immediate pressure and fear for their safety, Ristić and Simović were forced to leave the gathering and move to a safe distance.
It is particularly concerning that this is the second attack on Jovana Ristić and Nenad Simović within a short period of time. Repeated incidents targeting the same journalists require a swift and effective response from the institutions in order to prevent further threats to their safety and to avoid sending the message that physically preventing journalists from doing their work is permissible and will go unpunished.
IJAS warns that it is unacceptable for journalists who are duly accredited for an event and clearly identified as media representatives to be removed from a public gathering by unidentified individuals with no official markings.
IJAS recalls that journalists must be granted unhindered access to events attended by the country’s highest-ranking public officials and must be able to report on them regardless of the media outlet they work for and regardless of the decisions of unidentified individuals on the ground. Selectively removing media representatives and physically preventing them from filming constitute a serious interference with media freedom and the public’s right to be informed.
We call on the police and the competent prosecutor’s office to take all necessary measures without delay to establish the identity of those who attacked the journalists, initiate appropriate proceedings and ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable.
We call on the organisers to explain who the men seen in the footage of the incident are, in what capacity they were present, and under whose authority, if any, they controlled access to the gathering and decided who was allowed to film. It is also particularly important to establish why the journalists were not adequately protected by the police, whose duty is to ensure that journalists can work without obstruction while reporting from events of public interest.
Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS)
Belgrade, 25 August 2026
