On the night between June 11 and 12, 2022, unknown perpetrators broke the windows on the official premises of the local weekly “Glas Podrinja” from Sabac. The part of the concrete block that was thrown broke the window and ended up in one of the offices. Fortunately, no one was in the newsroom at the time of the attack.

The case was reported to the police, who went to the scene, conducted an investigation and collected the necessary evidence.

The director of “Glas Podrinje”, Zoran Zivkovic, told the SafeJournalist network that someone had to plan this attack in advance, considering the fact that the editorial offices are located in the very center of the city, where it is not easy to find a concrete block.

This was not the first attack on “Glas Podrinja”. Two years ago, with a similar concrete cube, the glass on the newsroom’s vehicle, which was parked next to the building, was broken. The perpetrators have not been identified until today.

The last case will be handed over to the prosecutor’s office, with hope that the perpetrator will be discovered as soon as possible, the newspaper’s editorial office said.

The Independent Journalists Association of Serbia (IJAS) strongly condemns the attack on the editorial office of “Glas Podrinja” and calls on the police and the prosecution to find and convict the perpetrators as soon as possible. Fortunately, no one was injured this time, but given that this is not the first time it has happened and that the attack was planned in advance, we fear that it will be repeated and that there will be injured. IJAS also reminds that journalists who work in small local communities are recognizable and thus more exposed to potential attacks, and calls on the authorities to stand up for them.

The SafeJournalist network, which represents over 8,200 media workers in the Western Balkans, joins its’ member IJAS in condemning the attack on newsroom “Glas Podrinja”. The network calls on the competent institutions in Serbia to act and ensure the safety of journalists. We also demand from the authorities to quickly carry out the entire procedure and punish the perpetrator.

Each attack on journalists is an attack on public interest, democracy and rights of all citizens.

Pristina – Skopje – Sarajevo – Zagreb – Belgrade – Podgorica – Tirana, June 14, 2022

Association of Journalists of Kosovo

Association of Journalists of Macedonia

BH Journalists Association

Croatian Journalists’ Association

Independent Journalists Association of Serbia

Trade Union of Media of Montenegro