Journalist Veran Matić attacked outside Serbian Parliament

Veran Matić, a prominent journalist and president of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM), was attacked on the evening of June 17 outside the National Assembly of Serbia in Belgrade. Matić was filming a public gathering when an unknown man approached him, snatched his phone, and prevented him from recording.

The assailant, later identified as Đorđe Prelić, a former leader of the "Alkatraz" fan group and convicted in the 2009 murder of French fan Brice Taton, only returned the phone after Matić identified himself as a journalist. Prelić reportedly told Matić that his reporting on TV B92 had ruined his life, suggesting a connection to the "Insajder" investigative series.

Matić reported the incident to security personnel at the Assembly, who claimed not to have noticed the attack and advised him to contact the police. N1 Serbia has inquired with the Ministry of Internal Affairs about the police response and the nature of the gathering outside the Assembly.

ANEM has voiced grave concern over Matić's safety, highlighting a sustained campaign of disinformation against him. This campaign, they state, was amplified by a documentary film and media reports falsely labeling Matić as a foreign agent, traitor, and embezzler. The association demands an immediate response from authorities, pointing to recent public statements by the President of Serbia that they believe have further endangered Matić.

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It would be good if those who were arrested, detained, and convicted because of Veran Matić had it all erased from the records – if he is so nice to people – and it was as if they were never punished. And that he nicely takes whiskey or a bottle of wine to their homes and apologizes to them for people serving time because of him, innocent and undeserving.