The traffic out of Scheveningen

Last night there was an attempt to assassinate Serbian president Boris Tadić. The method is similar to the one used in an unsuccessful attempt on prime minister Zoran Đinđić in February 2003, two weeks before he was killed by gunfire. In the attempt last night, the attacker tried to break through the security escort of the car Tadić was riding in and ram the car, but the security escort rammed the attacker's car instead.

Then it looks like there is something odd about the story. The security driver succeeded in hitting the attacker's car and forcing it to the side of the road. After that, the security people did not pursue the attacker, allowing him to escape instead. Perhaps they had to stay with Mr Tadić, but surely they have radios and there are police available to be called? This might just be an example of inept work, but it is the sort of thing that leads people to suspect that maybe somebody intended to let the attacker escape.

There is no information yet on the identity of the attacker or the motives for the attack. But the method of attack and choice of target would lead a person to think that we are once again seeing the violent remnants of the Milošević regime at work. There is no way they will return to power by legal means, they do not have popular support, and they cannot seem to get out of the habit of killing people.