BELGRADE, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- An assailant was killed after attacking a gendarmerie officer guarding the Israeli Embassy in Belgrade early Wednesday, Serbia's Interior Ministry said.
The incident occurred just after midnight on Wednesday, when an unidentified minor attacked the officer with two knives, the ministry said in a statement quoting caretaker Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Ivica Dacic.
The officer killed the assailant in self-defense but suffered a knife cut to his face, Dacic said, adding that the officer was in good condition and expected to be discharged from hospital later Wednesday.
Describing the incident as a terrorist attack, Dacic said Serbia had raised its terror threat level to red, the highest level, and stepped up security checks and police presence at key locations, including infrastructure facilities and places where large numbers of people gather.
Dacic said the assailant was a supporter of the Islamic State group and had previously been monitored by security services, adding that the assailant had displayed the group's black flag and emblem on his social media profile.
An investigation is underway.
In June 2024, a man wounded a gendarmerie officer in the neck with a crossbow outside the Israeli Embassy in Belgrade before being shot dead by the officer. Serbian authorities classified that incident as a terrorist attack. ■
