Man Kills 5 In Serbia Cafe Targeting Ex-Wife

A man driven by jealousy killed five including ex-wife in a crowded cafe early Saturday at around 1:40 a.m. local time with an assault gun.

The attack occurred in Zitiste village near Zrenjanin, 30 miles northwest of Serbian capital Belgrade. More than twenty people have been arrested.

The gunman, identified as just Z. S., targeted his ex-wife and one another woman. He randomly fired at other people too at the Makijato cafe. Several people are injured too including minors.

Domestic violence is frequent in Serbia and about 40 people die each year due to such attacks, said local human rights groups.

In 2015 six people were killed in similar violence when a man in northern Serbia attacked with a hunting rifle. In 2013 about a dozen people were killed in a central Serbian village by a Balkan War veteran.

Human rights group official Brankica Jankovic said, “The latest horrific events only serve to remind us that this is one of the burning issues in our society.”

According to eye witnesses, the attacker went home after seeing his ex-wife at the cafe. He returned shortly with a gun and started shooting that sounded like firecrackers.

Ljubomir Milinovic, owner of the cafe, said the cafe was crowded and people couldn’t grasp immediately what was going on and there was blood everywhere.