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A large section of Serbians have long been uneasy with his "strongman" style of leadership, since he came to power in 2012.

As Saturday's protest ended, organisers played a statement to the crowd, calling for Serbians to "take freedom into your own hands" and giving them the "green light".

On Friday, a spokesperson for a hospital in Risan said the 57-year-old Serbian basketball legend now has an artificial hip after emergency surgery.

Organisers say Serbian authorities have cut off government funding for the event and some sponsors have been "forced to withdraw under state pressure".

While these has now been a major twist in the tale that puts the scheme in some doubt, the Serbian government's decision to strike the deal wasn't too surprising.