Cliff Notes – Investigation into sonic weapon
- Serbian ambassador Goran Aleksic urges critics to await the outcomes of an investigation into allegations of an illegal sonic weapon used at a recent anti-government protest in Belgrade.
- Over 500,000 citizens have signed a petition for an independent inquiry, with reports detailing unusual sounds heard during the protest, leading to confusion and panic among attendees.
- Human rights groups have submitted over 4,000 statements to the European Court of Human Rights, citing physical and psychological issues linked to the incident, while Serbian officials have provided conflicting accounts of what transpired.
‘Wait for results’ of investigation into sonic weapon claims, Serbian ambassador says
The Serbian ambassador to Britain has said critics should “wait for the results” of an investigation after claims an illegal sonic weapon was used against protesters earlier this month.
He told News UK that no illegal weapon was used at the anti-government protest in Belgrade and that “independent experts” had been invited to investigate.
“According to statements of our government officials… nothing [illegal] was used that day,” Goran Aleksic said.
“Independent experts were invited to come to Serbia to do a thorough analysis of this. And I think the best thing is to wait for the results of that and then to draw conclusions.”
More than half a million people have signed a petition calling for an independent investigation.
Recent footage has added to mounting speculation surrounding dispersal tactics used at the 15 March demonstration attended by tens of thousands of people in Serbia’s capital.
The incident took place during a 15-minute period of silence to honour victims of the Novi Sad disaster in 2024 – when a concrete canopy at a rail station collapsed, killing 16 people.
Footage shows protesters holding up their lit mobile phones when suddenly there was a swooshing sound, and the crowds started running away.
Emit sound wave
Sonic weapons, which are illegal in Serbia, emit sound waves that can trigger physical and psychological effects, including dizziness, severe headaches, sharp ear pain, disorientation, eardrum ruptures, or even irreversible hearing damage.
Serbia’s populist president, Aleksandar Vucic, has dismissed the claims as “lies and fabrications”.
Ilic Sunderic, who was at the rally, said it was “quiet and peaceful and then we heard something we could not see… like a sound rolling toward us”.
It was, she said, “a subdued sound lasting only two to three seconds but very unusual and very frightening, like a sound from hell”.
“I have been going to protests for 30 years, but I’ve never heard anything like this,” she added.
Several Serbian rights groups said on Tuesday they had taken the issue to the European Court of Human Rights after collating more than 4,000 statements from people who complained of various physical and psychological problems after the incident.