SHARE
Saopštenje:
The President’s Loyal Guard
The Integrity Network strongly condemns the appointment of Igor Žmirić as commander of the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit (SAJ), warning that this move turns one of Serbia’s elite police formations into the President’s personal guard, rather than a service for all citizens.
Žmirić’s record in the Unit for the Protection of Certain Persons and Facilities (JZO) has been marred by serious misconduct and unlawful actions, including the unnecessary and excessive use of force against students and citizens during protests. Many of these incidents involved humiliating beatings and unlawful detentions of peaceful demonstrators.
During the August protests, Žmirić was filmed dragging a person by the hair while making an arrest, even though the individual offered no resistance. Such conduct amounts to the criminal offence of torture and abuse, punishable by up to ten years in prison. Žmirić was also among the officers, alongside Marko Kričak, who took several students into the Government garage. Student Nikolina Sinđelić later stated that Žmirić was one of the most brutal members of that group and filed a criminal complaint against him, along with Kričak.
It is especially concerning that Žmirić has a rose tattoo on his neck—a symbol once associated with loyalty to Milorad Ulemek Legija, sentenced to 40 years in prison for the assassination of Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić, Serbia’s first democratically elected head of government. This sends a message utterly incompatible with democratic values and the rule of law.
Rather than being promoted, Žmirić should be subject to serious disciplinary and criminal review for his previous actions.
The Ministry of Interior continues to exploit frequent, non-transparent changes to its Rulebook on Job Classification to bypass legal procedures for appointing senior officers. The commander of the SAJ should be selected through a public competition, ensuring transparency and trust in the process, and confirming that all candidates meet the necessary professional and ethical standards.
With about 300 members, the SAJ is among Serbia’s most capable and specialised police units, trained for rapid anti-terrorist interventions and high-risk arrests. In a political climate where the government brands critics and independent media as “terrorists,” this appointment paves the way for further abuse of the unit against peaceful citizens who protest, speak out, or demand accountability.
Integrity Network, Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP)
Tags: Mreža integriteta, saopštenje
RELATED
Date: 07.11.2025.
Author: Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) has launched the Integrity Network initiative, bringing together respected individuals from various spheres of society—police officers, professors, journalists, lawyers, and activists—with the aim of monitoring, documenting, and raising public awareness about cases of state capture at the local level.
Date: 04.11.2025.
Author: Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
At the panel discussion “Freedoms Under Pressure: Civil Society and Digital Oversight in Serbia and Abroad”, organised by the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) on 31 October in Belgrade, speakers warned that digital surveillance and spyware use are rapidly becoming tools of political control in Serbia and across Europe, posing severe risks to human rights and democracy.
Date: 31.10.2025.
Author: Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
Political, media and economic influences of certain actors continue to strongly define the region’s security landscape, concluded participants of the workshop on security and stability impacts in the region, held on 23 October 2025, at the Civic Energy Center (CEC) in North Mitrovica.
