A knife-wielding assailant attacked a police guard outside the Israeli Embassy in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, overnight to Wednesday, slightly wounding the officer before being shot dead by him, Serbia's interior minister said.

Interior Minister Ivica Dacic said the attacker, whom he described as a minor, had been monitored by security agencies as a supporter of the terrorist organization "Islamic State" (IS) .

The area around the embassy was secured by police after the attack Image: Serbian Interior Ministry/Handout/REUTERS

Israel's Foreign Ministry later confirmed an "attempted terrorist attack" near its embassy in Belgrade, adding that no personnel were injured and the incident was being investigated.

What else we know about the Belgrade attack?

The attacker was thought to come from the western Serbian town of Sabac and "kept the black flag in support of the 'Islamic State' on his Instagram” account," according to the minister.

Dacic said the assailant shouted "Allahu Akbar," or "God is great" in…