Sarajevo/Novi Sad, 29 March 2025 – The Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) expresses its deepest concern and strongest condemnation of the violent attack on high school students from Novi Sad and Sarajevo, which occurred last night, 28 March 2025, in Sarajevo.
The students were in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina as part of a regional high school exchange programme, which aims to support peacebuilding and reconciliation processes in the Western Balkans, as well as intercultural learning and dialogue between schools, students, and their communities.
A group of students was attacked in front of the Youth Theatre Sarajevo by individuals who were not part of the exchange programme and whose identities are currently being investigated by the authorities. The investigation into the case is ongoing. The injured students received medical assistance and were provided with medical care.
RYCO’s local team in Bosnia and Herzegovina responded immediately, contacted the schools, provided support to teachers and students, and established communication with all relevant institutions. RYCO team will continue to provide necessary support in the coming period.
Such an act of violence against students deeply shakes the very core of the values promoted by the programme and by RYCO. At a time when young people from different parts of the region are learning, travelling, and breaking down barriers through friendship and dialogue, brutal attacks like this one demonstrate how violence remains a real threat in public spaces.
This kind of behavior threatens every effort aimed at enabling youth to build connections freely and without fear, to discover other cultures, and to create a space of reconciliation and unity. The students from Novi Sad came to Sarajevo open to new experiences, eager to meet their peers and explore the local culture, but, unfortunately, they were also met with violence that should have never been part of that experience.
RYCO therefore calls on the authorities to take all necessary steps to urgently and thoroughly investigate this case and ensure that all appropriate legal action is taken against those responsible.
We also call on all relevant stakeholders—media, institutions, civil society organizations, and citizens—to express solidarity, refrain from hate speech, and work together to protect the space and vision of regional youth cooperation built on respect and collaboration. Let us all raise our voices against violence and stand in defense of the values that unite young people across the Western Balkans.