Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has warned protesters against violence amid fresh clashes with police in Tirana and growing calls for his resignation.
This is reported by AFP.
"Protests are a right, while violence is a crime. At this critical stage of our democratic development, this red line must be clearly drawn," Rama wrote on Facebook.
He said he was ready for dialogue, but not with those who resort to violence, and not with political parties that do not distance themselves from it.
On Monday, hundreds of protesters again gathered in Tirana’s main square and outside the Ministry of Education. They said they would continue the demonstrations until Rama resigns.
The protests have been going on for several months. Among the reasons are demands to improve conditions at higher education institutions, anger over corruption and dissatisfaction with the government.
Police special units used water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd, which attacked government buildings. Protesters threw stones, Molotov cocktails and fireworks at law enforcement officers. Shops were also damaged in several parts of the city.
According to the authorities, around 300 people were injured in the clashes, more than half of them police officers.
On Sunday, protesters threw Molotov cocktails at a police station and at the entrance to the Ministry of the Interior. Other government buildings were also significantly damaged, including the Ministry of Education, which remains one of the centres of the protest movement.
During a meeting with officers on Monday, Rama praised the police response and promised to pay €2,500 to each officer on the front line. He also announced a substantial pay rise from 1 January.
The Prime Minister blamed the unrest on “foreign forces” and said disinformation was being spread by Russia and Iran. According to him, Russia is not an ally of Albania and its influence extends into social media. Rama also spoke of tens of thousands of fake profiles which, he claimed, are linked to Iran and used under the guise of environmental activism.
The initial trigger for the anti-government protests in the country was a controversial resort construction project linked to the family of US President Donald Trump.
What Is Known About the Construction of a Luxury Resort in Albania
The Kushner resort is planned for a stretch of wild coastline, forests and wetlands that are home to sea turtles and pink flamingos. The flamingos have become a symbol of the protest movement, which has been dubbed the “Flamingo Revolution”.
Kushner’s wife, Ivanka Trump, previously said the idea for the resort came after she and her husband saw the coastline during a yacht trip.
In 2024, Kushner presented the project on social media, publishing an artist’s rendering of the future complex with a hotel, villas, swimming pools and yacht moorings. He did not disclose the amount of his own investment.
The Albanian government is actively backing the construction. Rama said in the summer that it was a “wonderful” project that would go ahead despite the protests.
Earlier, Brussels had already urged Albania, as an EU candidate country, to comply with European environmental standards when implementing the project.
In July, it emerged that Albanian prosecutors suspect Miami businessman Artur Shehu—who is wanted at home on suspicion of laundering proceeds from drug trafficking—of forging documents for the land where the resort is to be built.
In recent days in Albania’s capital, Tirana, tens of thousands of students have taken to the streets in protest. People set fire to a government building and two banks, and also pelted police with stones.