Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic was assassinated yesterday, gunned down outside the main government building in Belgrade.
"He's dead," the source from his Democratic Party said.
Djindjic, 50, a reformer who played a central role in the downfall of former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic in October 2000, was shot in the chest by two large caliber sniper bullets, a police source said.
Local B92 radio said he was shot in the back and the stomach.
Djindjic narrowly escaped injury in another incident last month when a truck suddenly swerved out of its lane toward a convoy of cars -- one of which was carrying the prime minister.
Djindjic then suggested the near-miss could have been linked to his government's attempts to stamp out organized crime which flourished during the turbulent rule of Milosevic in the 1990s.
It was Djindjic who took the decision in mid-2001 to ship Milosevic to the war crimes tribunal in The Hague, where he is facing trial for genocide and crimes against humanity.
B92 said two people had been arrested in connection with the shooting and Beta news agency reported three people detained. There was no immediate official confirmation of the reports.
Serbian government ministers immediately gathered in emergency session, a government source said.
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