Serbia's president has firmly denied claims that he took part in so-called "sniper tourism" during the siege of Sarajevo, calling the accusations false and defamatory.
Aleksandar Vučić addressed the matter at a UK–Western Balkans business conference in Belgrade, saying he never harmed anyone and has never used a sniper rifle.
He added that a photograph cited by critics actually shows him holding a camera tripod, not a weapon.
The allegation was made in a complaint to Italian prosecutors by Croatian journalist Domagoj Margetić, who referred to archival video and testimony from Bosnian officials to suggest Vučić volunteered with Bosnian-Serb forces positioned above Sarajevo.
Vučić's office has rejected the claims as deliberate misinformation aimed at damaging Serbia's institutions and the president's reputation.
His spokesperson said Vučić was working as a journalist and translator in nearby Pale at the time and had no ties to military operations.
The Italian probe follows accusations in the 2022 Slovenian documentary Sarajevo Safari and a complaint from Italian writer Ezio Gavazzeni.
Gavazzeni alleges that wealthy foreigners paid to shoot at civilians in the besieged city during the early 1990s.
Similar stories about foreign "sniper safaris" have surfaced before, but international authorities have not confirmed them.
The chief prosecutor at the UN-backed war crimes mechanism in The Hague said the office has no information on these claims, while Bosnia’s war crimes prosecutor received a complaint in 2022 but has not brought charges.
Veterans who served in Sarajevo, including UK special forces personnel, have described such accounts as an urban myth.
The siege itself lasted nearly four years and resulted in more than 11,000 deaths amid relentless shelling and sniper fire targeting the city.
The Italian investigation is ongoing, and Vučić continues to deny any involvement in wartime violence or participation in armed activities during the siege.
