Serbian government official faces forgery trial over withdrawn Kushner-linked project

A Serbian government minister and three others went on trial on Wednesday on charges of abuse of office and falsifying of documents to help pave the way for a real estate project that was to be financed by a company of Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law. Kushner has since withdrawn from the planned multi-million investment that envisaged building a high-rise hotel, a luxury apartment complex, office spaces and shops to replace a sprawling bombed-out military complex in central Belgrade. The plan was backed by the government of Serbia's autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic who had said it would help improve ties with the U.S. But the Serbian public and international heritage groups opposed the idea to turn a protected cultural heritage zone into a commercial compound.