Serbian police shot dead a young man outside the Israeli embassy in Belgrade early Wednesday after he rushed at an officer with two knives while shouting "Allahu Akbar," according to Interior Minister Ivica Dacic. The officer sustained a minor knife wound to the face and returned fire, killing the attacker.
Dacic said the suspect was a minor and Serbian citizen being monitored by security services as a known Islamic State supporter. Security services reported the suspect had posted an Islamic State flag image on Instagram. The suspect has not been formally identified.
The injured officer did not require hospital treatment. Israel's foreign ministry confirmed no embassy personnel were harmed and the mission was closed at the time.
Dacic raised Serbia's terrorism threat level to "red alert," the highest designation, triggering stricter security checks and increased police presence at infrastructure and crowded areas.
This marks the second attack on Belgrade's Israeli embassy in under three years. In June 2024, a police officer was shot in the neck with a crossbow outside the same embassy. That officer survived and shot dead the assailant, identified as a Serbian man who had converted to Islam.