Serbian shot dead after attacking officer outside Israeli embassy, minister says

Serbian police shot dead a young man outside the Israeli embassy in Belgrade in the early hours of Wednesday after what authorities called a "terrorist attack".

The country's interior minister, Ivica Dacic, said the attacker had rushed at a police officer with two knives while shouting the phrase "Allahu Akbar". The officer sustained a minor knife wound to the face and shot the attacker.

Dacic said the suspect has not been identified, but he was a minor and Serbian citizen who was being monitored by security services as he was "known to be a supporter of the Islamic State".

Speaking to reporters outside the embassy, Dacic said an investigation is ongoing, but security services said the suspect had posted a picture of the Islamic State flag on his Instagram.

Dacic raised the country's terrorism threat level to "red alert" - the highest threat level – meaning stricter security checks and increased police presence at places like infrastructure facilities and areas where large crowds gather.

The interior minister said he had visited the injured police officer, who was reportedly doing well and did not need hospital care for his wounds.

Armed security personnel were seen standing guard outside the Israeli embassy on Wednesday morning.

Israel's foreign ministry confirmed in a social media post that no embassy personnel were injured and the mission was closed at the time of the incident.

This is the second such attack on Belgrade's Israeli embassy in less than three years; in June 2024, a man shot a police officer in the neck with a crossbow.

The officer who was shot survived the attack and shot dead the assailant, identified as a Serbian man who had converted to Islam.

Wednesday's attack comes just one day after elections in Israel.