The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS) strongly condemns the threats directed at Radar weekly journalist Vuk Cvijić and N1 television journalist Mladen Savatović, which represent a direct attempt at intimidation and pressure. NUNS calls on the competent institutions to respond immediately to these threats.
Vuk Cvijić received a phone call yesterday from an unknown number abroad. During the brief conversation, he was issued explicit threats related to an article published today in the new issue of Radar.
An unidentified person warned Cvijić to “watch” what would be published in the next issue, adding that he would “get to know” the caller if the text was published. The journalist replied that the content had already been finalized and prepared for publication, to which he received the response: “Then you’ll meet me,” after which the call was terminated. The threat was immediately reported to the competent prosecutor’s office and marked as urgent.
IJAS stresses that this is not an isolated incident. Over the past year, Vuk Cvijić has been physically attacked several times in public places, including assaults by a tabloid owner captured on surveillance cameras, as well as attacks by members of riot police units. None of these cases has received a judicial outcome to date. At the same time, Radar’s newsroom received a number of threatening messages last week via email and through comments on its website, which, among other things, alluded to the attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and suggested the possibility of a similar scenario.
IJAS also condemns threats sent to N1 journalist Mladen Savatović, delivered to the newsroom’s online address. The threats were posted in a comment under the pseudonym “Srećko” on the N1 website, along with insults and an announcement that the author would wait for Savatović in front of the N1 building. N1 reported the case to the Prosecutor’s Office for High-Tech Crime.
These threats came after Savatović stated that he would sue Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, following the President’s reaction to the journalist’s questions regarding the “Generalštab” case, which included insults and public discrediting of the journalist.
This case points to a dangerous pattern: first public targeting and pressure, followed by concrete threats and intimidation attempts aimed at deterring journalists from asking questions in the public interest.
IJAS demands that the competent institutions, without delay, identify those who threatened Vuk Cvijić and Mladen Savatović and shed light on previously reported cases of physical attacks and threats, in order to break the pattern of impunity that emboldens perpetrators. The failure to resolve cases and the large number of threats recorded under “unknown perpetrators” demonstrate that there is no deterrent effect for attackers.
In such situations, it is crucial that the prosecution and police act urgently, treating attacks on journalists as attacks on the public interest, because the goal is not only to intimidate an individual, but to suppress the public’s right to be informed.
IJAS reiterates that it is necessary for holders of the highest public offices to stop targeting journalists and publicly discrediting newsrooms, as such rhetoric constitutes a direct invitation and incentive for threats and attacks. Institutions must send a clear message that an attack on journalists is an attack on the public interest and citizens’ right to information, and that every attempt at intimidation will have a swift, visible, and lawful outcome.
Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS)
Belgrade, December 18, 2025
