Two suspects have been arrested amid protests that the president claims are backed by foreign powers

The Serbian authorities have arrested two people suspected of plotting to assassinate President Aleksandar Vucic and his wife and children, the Interior Ministry has said. The arrests come as Serbia grapples with anti-government protests which Vucic says are driven by foreign interference.

In a statement on Monday, the Interior Ministry said the suspects - identified as D.R., 50, and M.R., 42, both residents of Kraljevo, Serbia - were detained in a joint operation involving several law enforcement agencies.

Officials allege that they conspired since December 2025 to "forcibly change the constitutional order of the Republic of Serbia."

The operation would have involved "arranging the procurement of weapons and an attack on the life and body of the President of the Republic of Serbia, his wife and children," as well as violence against police officers.

The suspects have been detained for up to 48 hours based on a criminal complaint and will be brought before a prosecutor's office, the ministry added.

The arrests come amid one of Serbia's most serious political crises in recent years, which began in November 2024 after a concrete canopy at the newly renovated Novi Sad railway station collapsed, killing 16 people.

The tragedy sparked sweeping - and at times violent - protests, with demonstrators accusing the government of corruption and a lack of accountability, and demanding snap elections and Vucic's resignation.

Vucic and his supporters say that the protests were backed by foreign powers seeking to engineer a color revolution in Serbia, which maintains close ties with Moscow and has resisted EU pressure to sanction Russia over the Ukraine conflict. The president has also accused the Albanian and Kosovo intelligence services of attempting to destabilize Serbia.

Following the Novi Sad tragedy, the government announced a series of concessions, including the publication of prosecutorial documents related to the collapse and a pledge to increase university funding by 20%. Several senior ministers submitted their resignations.

Vucic has also promised to hold snap elections. Although no date has been set, he has indicated that they could take place this year.

(RT.com)