An international media monitoring group said on Wednesday that press freedom in Serbia is facing a “critical” situation, with an increased level of attacks and threats against journalists.

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) sent a delegation comprising representatives from multiple international organizations to Belgrade to meet with people working for the press as well as civil society groups in Serbia to garner information about violations of press freedom by the authorities in the country. The visit came amid ongoing protests by students, teachers, farmers and other citizens in Serbia’s capital over the Novi Sad railway station roof collapse in November 2024, which resulted in 15 deaths. The protesters were demanding the release of information related to the incident and accountability for the disaster.

Freedom of the press has been under serious attack in Serbia, with journalists facing systematic persecution. A report by Amnesty International found that two journalists working for the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) were targets of surveillance using Pegasus, a military-grade spyware. MFRR’s platform shows that there have been several dozen documented cases of attacks on journalism since November 2024. Apart from surveillance on journalists, recent incidents also include forcibly preventing reporters from filming, arbitrarily denying foreign media workers from entering the country, and physically assaulting a journalist. In light of the recent developments in the country, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urged the European Union (EU) to consider Serbia’s violations of the freedom of the press during the review of the country’s application for EU membership.

The Treaty on European Union stipulates that countries seeking to join the EU must respect freedom and human dignity. The President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, also mentioned on X (formerly known as Twitter) that Serbia has to take action to address media freedom and other critical issues in the country.