Party like it's 2019: Serbia hosts raucous New Year's Eve
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Boisterous New Year’s Eve celebrations kicked off Friday in the Serbian capital of Belgrade where, unlike elsewhere in Europe, mass gatherings were allowed despite fears of the fast-spreading omicron variant.
Large crowds gathered in the city for outdoor concerts, fireworks and a light show at a newly-constructed Dubai-style glass tower that has become a trademark project by Serbia’s right-wing populist government.
With its numerous nightclubs and bars and relatively low prices, Belgrade has become a major attraction for mostly young partygoers coming in from neighboring Balkan states. Serbia’s state RTS television reported that about 100,000 visitors have flocked to Belgrade for the holidays, filling up the city’s hotels and rented apartments. Restaurants and bars have been packed.
Belgrade deputy mayor Goran Vesic said he’s proud of the thousands out on the streets for this New Year’s Eve, saying the Serbian capital “tonight is the center of Europe.”
Serbian officials have ignored warnings by medical experts, who say that mass festivities should be scrapped as long as omicron is racing through the continent. Most European nations have imposed restrictions and banned New Year’s celebrations to try to contain the virus that has fueled record numbers of new infections.
Serbian epidemiologist Zoran Radovanovic, meanwhile, compared the state-sponsored gatherings to “premeditated mass murder.” Radovanovic predicted that Serbia will see thousands of new COVID-19 infections after the holidays.
In a bid to stave off concerns, Belgrade city authorities provided 50,000 face masks and had rapid virus test sites and disinfection tools at the entrances to fenced-in areas for the New Year's Eve concerts. But the COVID-19 vaccination passes that are...
