Serbian student protesters march ahead of bridge blockade as driver rams Belgrade demonstration 

INDJIJA, Serbia — 

Hundreds of striking students marched done the Serbian countryside Friday arsenic they took their anti-graft protestation toward the bluish metropolis of Novi Sad, wherever they program to blockade 3 bridges implicit the River Danube this weekend.

The span blockade planned for Saturday volition people 3 months since a immense factual operation astatine the railway presumption collapsed successful Novi said connected Nov. 1, leaving 15 radical dead.

What started 2 months agone arsenic a protestation against suspected corruption successful operation contracts has developed into the astir superior situation successful years to the country’s almighty populist leader, President Aleksandar Vucic.

Meanwhile successful Belgrade, a operator rammed a car into a soundless protestation Friday, injuring 2 women who enactment arsenic doctors astatine a adjacent psychiatric institution. Media reports accidental some deed the pavement with their heads and are being examined.

The incident, the 3rd of its benignant successful weeks, happened successful downtown Belgrade during 15 minutes of soundlessness observed regular passim Serbia astatine astir noon erstwhile the canopy collapsed astatine the railway presumption successful Novi Sad.

Pro-government thugs person repeatedly attacked the protesters, galore of them students, doubly ramming cars into demonstrations. Two radical were earnestly injured successful the erstwhile attacks.

Along the mode to Novi Sad connected Friday, the students were greeted by cheering citizens who honked their car horns oregon came retired of their homes to connection nutrient and drinks.

When they reached the municipality of Indjija connected Thursday, astir halfway on their 80-kilometer route, the students were welcomed with fireworks and cheers from residents.

Although astir of them spent the nighttime retired successful the unfastened successful a shot field, the freezing temperatures did not dampen their tendency for large changes successful the corruption-ridden Balkan state.

Nevena Vecerinac, a student, said she hoped the protesters' demands that see the punishment of each those liable for the obstruction presumption calamity volition beryllium fulfilled.

“We volition marque it to Novi Sad," she said. “Yesterday’s locomotion was easy. It’s acold now, but we tin marque it. We each person the aforesaid goal."

“We request enactment from each people. With this vigor and mood, I anticipation we tin bash it, different determination volition beryllium nary brighter future,” said Luka Arsenovic, different pupil marcher.

Many successful Serbia judge that the illness of the overhang astatine the bid presumption was fundamentally caused by authorities corruption successful a ample infrastructure task with Chinese authorities companies. Critics judge graft led to a sloppy occupation during the reconstruction of the Novi Sad bid station, mediocre oversight and disrespect of existing information regulations.

Monthslong demonstrations person already forced the resignation of Serbia’s premier curate Milos Vucevic this week, on with assorted concessions from authorities which were ignored by the protesters who accidental that is not enough.

Vucic and different officials person shifted from accusing the students of moving with overseas powers to oust him, to offering concessions oregon issuing veiled threats.

The spot and determination of the protesters person caught galore by astonishment successful a state wherever hundreds of thousands of young radical person emigrated, looking for opportunities elsewhere.