Serbian police kill knife-wielding assailant outside Israeli Embassy in Belgrade

In brief

• A knife-wielding teenager attacked a gendarme outside the Israeli Embassy in Belgrade shortly after midnight and was shot dead.
• The officer suffered light injuries; Serbian authorities say the attacker was a suspected Islamic State supporter.
• Serbia raised its terror threat level to the highest possible and boosted police presence nationwide.

Attack on guard outside Israeli Embassy

A young man armed with a knife went after a gendarme posted outside the Israeli Embassy in Belgrade shortly after midnight on Wednesday. The officer was lightly hurt, and the assailant was killed by the guard's return fire (Serbian police shoot dead assailant at Israeli Embassy – DW) (Atak nożownika przed ambasadą Izraela w Belgradzie. Padły strzały – Onet).

Suspect linked to Islamic State

Dacic said security services had been tracking the young man as a suspected supporter of the Islamic State group. He had posted a black flag and the group's symbols on his Instagram account, the minister said (Atak nożownika przed ambasadą Izraela w Belgradzie. Napastnik zastrzelony – Bankier.pl). Police said he came from the western town of Sabac.

Injuries and embassy response

The gendarme suffered a light injury to his face and was reported to be in good condition, with discharge from hospital expected the same day (Krzyczał „Allahu Akbar”. Nożownik zastrzelony przed ambasadą – RMF24). Israel's Foreign Ministry confirmed an attempted terrorist attack near the embassy, said no staff had been hurt and announced an investigation.

Heightened security across Serbia

After the attack, Serbia raised its terror threat level to the highest possible and increased police presence at key sites nationwide, the interior minister said (У Сербії біля посольства Ізраїлю стався напад із ножами – Європейська правда). The incident came a day after Israel's parliamentary election on 27 October (В Белграде застрелили подростка, напавшего на охранника у посольства Израиля – Meduza).

Earlier attack at the same site

It was not the first attack on police guarding the embassy. In June 2024 a man shot a gendarme in the neck with a crossbow outside the building; the officer then killed him.