BALKAN

HELLISH NIGHT IN TIRANA: Protesters tried to set fire to Edi Rama’s cabinet, violent clashes with police! (VIDEO)

by Serbian Times11. February 2026.11. February 2026.

Conflict between protesters and police in Tirana, participants of the protest against the corruption of Prime Minister Rama and his cabinet threw Molotov cocktails in front of the government and parliament of Albania

The Albanian police used water cannons and fired tear gas last night at protesters in the capital of Tirana in front of the government building where the cabinet of Prime Minister Edi Rama is located.

Protest participants demanded the resignation of Rama due to a major corruption scandal.

On Tuesday evening, protesters threw Molotov cocktails and flares at the police, who used water cannons and tear gas against the gathered.

According to media reports carried by Al Jazeera, clashes also occurred near the Albanian parliament building

Contradictory data on the number of injured

At least 16 people were injured and taken to the hospital, and 13 people were arrested on the spot.

Media reports that there are disagreements over whether the number of injured represents only police officers, protesters, or both.

This protest was only the latest in a series of anti-government demonstrations in Albania in recent months.

Political dissatisfaction has been growing since November, when prosecutors claimed that Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, who is also the Albanian Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, interfered in public procurement within government construction contracts.

She was briefly suspended from office before being returned to duty the following month at the request of Prime Minister Rama.

Protesters say they want both Rama and Balluku gone.

They also called on parliament to suspend Balluku’s parliamentary immunity so that she could be criminally prosecuted.

More than 1,300 police officers were deployed for last night’s demonstrations, just two weeks after another violent gathering in Tirana.

Berisha stands behind the protest

Both protests were called by Sali Berisha, leader of the opposition Democratic Party and former prime minister.

AP reports that he said on Tuesday that the protests are a sign that a “peaceful uprising” is underway in Albania.

Berisha has also faced corruption charges in the past.

Political analyst Mentor Kikia told the American agency that the Albanian leadership and the opposition have similar shortcomings.

-Citizens are distrustful, because they have always voted for the lesser evil to remove the greater evil from power. The current perception is that if Rama leaves, Berisha will return. One left power because of corruption, the other must also leave power because of corruption – said Kikia.