The key facts
- Protests in Tirana have been ongoing since Tuesday; the fiercest clashes took place on Saturday, when a courthouse, banks, a post office and a police station were set on fire
- Health ministry: 65 injured on Saturday (37 police officers), 272 in total since Tuesday, including 169 police officers; 28 injured on Sunday
- Rama, in a video address, refused to resign and said the protests were 'the work of a foreign hand'; his visit to Austrian Chancellor Stocker was cancelled by the Albanian side
Sixth day of protests and clashes in central Tirana
On Sunday, Albanian police used water cannons and tear gas on the sixth day of anti-government protests that began on Tuesday. Demonstrators are demanding action over poor conditions at universities, high tuition fees and corruption. Hundreds of protesters gathered at noon in front of the education ministry chanting 'Rama, resign'; after police attempted to disperse the crowd, the protests spread through the city centre and escalated into hours-long clashes.
Arson and casualties
According to an AFP journalist, demonstrators threw stones and Molotov cocktails, launched fireworks, set rubbish bins on fire, smashed windows, including at the headquarters of the ruling Socialist Party, set a police station on fire and torched the entrance to the interior ministry. Police responded with rubber bullets and tear gas; ambulances were on site. Police spokesman Albert Nushi said the station was attacked with Molotov cocktails and fireworks, which endangered both officers and detainees. 'An attack on a police station is not a protest. Violence against police officers, attacks on institutions and actions that endanger people's lives are unacceptable,' he said, urging protesters to stay away from masked perpetrators of violence and to gather peacefully. The health ministry told AFP that 28 people were injured on Sunday: 19 police officers, four protesters, four passers-by and one journalist; 16 police officers were wounded, 14 of them during the attack on the station.
The fiercest clashes — on Saturday
The most severe violence in Tirana occurred on Saturday: protesters threw stones, Molotov cocktails, metal objects and fireworks at police, and set cars and rubbish bins on fire to build barricades. A courthouse, banks and a post office were set on fire or seriously damaged. According to the health ministry's Sunday report, 65 people were injured on Saturday, including 37 police officers, and 12 were hospitalised. Since Tuesday, 272 people have been injured, including 169 police officers, according to the ministry. Ahead of Sunday's rally, shops and offices in the centre covered their windows with metal shutters, and utility crews removed paving stones so they could not be thrown.
Rama's response and international reaction
Prime Minister Edi Rama, in a video address lasting more than an hour, rejected resignation and said the protests were 'the work of a foreign hand'. According to the Austrian federal press service, his official visit to Federal Chancellor Christian Stocker, scheduled for Monday, was cancelled by the Albanian side. The US Embassy in Tirana on Saturday evening called for 'restraint and calm from all sides'. The European Commission in a written statement 'condemned the use of violence in Tirana and other cities', adding that the response to it 'must remain proportionate' and that in a candidate country firmly committed to the EU accession process, grievances must be addressed through constructive dialogue and peaceful means.
Context and voices of participants
The unrest continues months of anti-government protests in the country, initially sparked by a controversial resort construction project in an environmentally protected area linked to the family of US President Donald Trump. Writer and activist Lura Elezi, 38, told AFP she was protesting for 'a better life, the rule of law and against crime and corruption': 'I love my country, but my government does not respect us, it neglects us. Every citizen must take responsibility for their country — to lead, to love, not to destroy their nation.'
