Albania protests over education costs and corruption stretch into eighth day
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The gist
Albania's anti-government protests reached an eighth day, with 167 arrested and 132 officers injured over five days.
The unrest tests Prime Minister Edi Rama, who blames foreign actors.
Background
The protests began as a student-led movement over rising education costs and alleged corruption, then spread to cities across Albania and grew into a broader call for Prime Minister Edi Rama, the country's Socialist leader, to step down. The wider movement has been partly fuelled by opposition to a controversial luxury tourism development linked to Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law. Rama, who says governments change through elections rather than revolution, has accused foreign actors of fuelling the violence, while Russia has rejected his claims.
How it unfolded
- Oct 13, 2026 –16, 2026Protests spread across Albania over four days; hospitals recorded 207 injured, including 132 police officers, 58 protesters and 17 bystanders.
- Oct 15, 2026Violent student-led protests entered a third day; police used water cannons, demonstrators smashed windows in the capital and parliament cancelled its session.
- Oct 17, 2026On the fifth day, protesters gathered outside the Ministry of Education in Tirana; police fired rubber bullets and tear gas, and said 167 people had been arrested and 132 officers injured over the five days.
- Oct 17, 2026Clashes escalated, with Molotov cocktails reportedly thrown toward police lines and two members of the Eagle special unit momentarily engulfed in flames.
- Oct 18, 2026Russia rejected Prime Minister Edi Rama's claims that Russia and Iran were behind the violent protests.
- Oct 19, 2026On the seventh day, protesters threw stones and Molotov cocktails as they marched through the capital; police responded with tear gas. Rama blamed outside forces, citing ANTIFA.
- Oct 20, 2026On the eighth day, demonstrators threw fireworks and objects at police, who responded with a water cannon and tear gas.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- Prime Minister Edi Rama said he supports the right to protest but that masked individuals vandalising businesses are committing crimes and will be held accountable; he rejected calls for resignation, saying governments change through elections.
- Official
- Rama accused foreign actors of fuelling the unrest, alleging they do not want Albania to join the European Union, and said the violence came from young people radicalized under the influence of ANTIFA.
- Party
- Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova rejected Rama's claims, saying it is Albania's own citizens who took to the streets and that he should solve his domestic problems.
- Public
- Protesters, many of them students, are demonstrating over rising education costs and widespread corruption, calling for Rama to step down and demanding better education, financial support and job opportunities.
- Official
- Health Minister Klodiana Spahiu called the violence intolerable after visiting injured officers in hospital.
Still unverified
Reports that Molotov cocktails were thrown, that two Eagle special unit members were momentarily engulfed in flames and that officers were struck by stones are described as reported, with the outlet saying more verified information would follow. Details on injuries, arrests and property damage during the seventh and eighth days of protests were not immediately available.