LGBTQ+ Rights activists in the Serbian-run region of Bosnia were assaulted hours after police banned an LGBTQ+ event due to security concerns.
The attack on the activists took place following a meeting at the offices of the Bosnian branch of the global anti-corruption group Transparency International in Banja Luka, where the group met to organise an LGBTQ+ rights event, which was then cancelled by local police.
According to reports, over a dozen men chased and punched the activists through the streets after they left the meeting, leaving several injured and one individual requiring medical attention.
Following the incident, Banja Luka police, who arrived after the assault had taken place, escorted the activists back to the police station to take statements and gain any further information to help track down the perpetrators.
The attack followed the cancellation of an LGBTQ+ event by police, which was being put together by numerous LGBTQ+ and Human rights groups from across Bosnia – an event that saw widespread backlash across the nation, including the Bosnian Serb president, Milorad Dodik, who described LGBTQ+ people as “harassers” adding that he hoped the “official bodies will prevent them from gathering both in closed venues and in the open.”
