Thousands protest over Serbia election result, march to main police station. On Monday, a sizable crowd gathered in front of the Central Election Commission’s building in Belgrade to express their disapproval of an election earlier this month that foreign observers deemed unacceptable.

Demonstrators marched to the central police station, which they believed was the location where individuals who the police had detained were being held.

An opposition demonstration on Sunday against election results resulted in the arrest of 38 individuals who reported the incident earlier in the day, according to the police. The police reported that eight officers were hurt during the skirmishes.

On Sunday, protesters shattered windows and glass at the main entrance of the town hall. At around 10 p.m. (2100 GMT), police deployed pepper spray to disperse the protesters and bring these individuals under control.

According to Ivica Ivkovic, who is in charge of the administration of the police force, two of the eight police officers who were injured had significant injuries.

During a press conference, Ivkovic delivered the following statement: “We will continue to work to maintain peace and order, and we expect to see more arrests in relation to protests that took place last night.”

The ally of Serbia, Russia, said that troops supported by foreign agencies were attempting to stir up violence. “There are processes and attempts by third forces, including those from abroad, to provoke such unrest in Belgrade,” said Dmitry Peskov, a spokesperson for the Kremlin. “We have no doubt that the leadership of the republic will ensure the rule of law.”

The opposition parties accused the police of using excessive force, and several social networks displayed images of officers beating up people in the streets close to the town hall.

HELP FROM THE RUSSIANS

Ana Brnabic, stepping down as prime minister, expressed her gratitude to the Russian Secret Service for providing information on activities the opposition was planning. “This (my statement) is not going to be popular in the West,” Brnabic, a member of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), who is now in power, stated on Serbian television.

Despite the pressure from Western nations to impose sanctions against Russia, Serbia, a candidate for membership in the European Union, has done so.

Throughout the years, Moscow has been one of Serbia’s most reliable friends, particularly after 1999, when Russia voiced its opposition to the NATO bombings that were carried out against the rump Yugoslavia, which included both Serbia and Montenegro.

The Social Networks (SNS) were reported to have obtained an unfair edge through media bias, the unlawful influence of President Aleksandar Vucic, and voting irregularities such as vote-buying, according to a multi-national monitoring mission conducted on Monday.

The authorities of Serbia continue to deny any impropriety.

According to early figures collected by the state election commission, the populist-ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) received 46.72 percent of the ballots in the snap parliamentary election on December 17.

After receiving 23.56% of the vote, Serbia Against Violence finished in second place in the election, and the Socialist Party of Serbia came in third place with 6.56% of the vote.