Tirana sees sixth day of violent protests as Albania’s PM refuses to resign

At this moment, no one is clear on what tomorrow will bring, says Albanian journalist Lindita Karadaku.

A protester throws a tear gas canister during an antigovernment protest by students in Tirana, Albania, October 18, 2026 [Florion Goga/Reuters]

Violent protests have rocked Albania’s capital Tirana for the sixth consecutive day as Prime Minister Edi Rama, who is serving his fourth term, ruled out resigning.

Hundreds of protesters gathered again on Sunday in front of the Ministry of Education, chanting “Rama, resign” in a tense standoff with the police, who later used rubber bullets, water cannons and tear gas to hold back the crowds.

list 1 of 3 Albania’s PM blames ‘foreign hands’ for protests

list 2 of 3 Albanian police fire rubber bullets as protests against Rama escalate

list 3 of 3 Protesters allege police brutality as violent clashes rage on in Albania

Shops and institutions in the centre of the city have secured their doors and windows with metal shutters, while city workers removed paving stones to prevent their use by protesters.

Lindita Karadaku, a journalist for Albanian news outlet TV Klan, told Al Jazeera on Sunday that it was difficult to see how the unrest could unfold or how long it could last.

“Prime Minister Rama is determined and has made it very clear that he will not resign, but also the young people who are protesting are determined and make it clear that they will not give up so easily,” she said. “At this moment, no one is clear what tomorrow will bring.”

Riot police take cover behind a water cannon as protesters throw fireworks during clashes at an antigovernment demonstration in Tirana, Albania, October 18, 2026 [Boris Grdanoski/AP]

Rama said during a live social media stream on Sunday that “the government is not being challenged” but implied that ongoing unrest in the country might affect Albania’s path towards European Union membership.

“Albanians need to think very clearly,” Rama said. “⁠Do they want this, or do they want the EU?”

Albania is hoping to achieve membership status by 2030.

Protesters are demanding better education, more jobs, a stop to alleged ongoing corruption, and Rama’s resignation.

According to local media reports, demonstrators in Tirana were primarily attacking government institutions and the police, including the Ministry of Education building and the area around Rama’s office.

The prime minister, who has been in office since 2013, blamed the involvement of a “foreign hand” for the surge in protests and said his government is doing its best to address corruption.

A protester throws a Molotov cocktail during an antigovernment protest by students in Tirana, Albania, October 18, 2026 [Louisa Gouliamaki/Reuters]

At the same time, he said that he was ready to listen to the justified demands of students and discuss the costs of education. But he insisted that those responsible for the destruction of property must be held accountable.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, a political analyst from Tirana, Mentor Nazarko, said Rama does not seem to understand “the depth of the problem, has not found solutions and has lost a lot of time”.

“His legitimacy has melted away. Between him and the citizens there is almost nothing but the police: untrained for protests, poorly paid, with segments that collaborate with crime and corruption,” he said.

According to a Ministry of Health report issued on Sunday morning, 65 people were injured, of which 37 were police officers, while 12 were hospitalised. Since Tuesday, 272 people have been injured in the clashes, including 169 police officers, the ministry said.

Discontent in Albania has been growing for months. The first protests in the country this year were called the “Flamingo Revolution” and began in May. Demonstrators rebelled against the controversial project of a luxury tourist complex in the south of Albania, affiliated with Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.

阿尔巴尼亚记者林迪塔·卡拉达库表示，目前没有人清楚明天会发生什么。

2026年10月18日，阿尔巴尼亚地拉那，一名抗议者在学生反政府抗议活动中投掷催泪瓦斯罐。[Florion Goga/路透社]

暴力抗议活动已连续第六天席卷阿尔巴尼亚首都地拉那，现任总理埃迪·拉马（Edi Rama）已排除辞职的可能性，他目前正处于第四个总理任期。

周日，数百名抗议者再次聚集在教育部大楼前，高喊“拉玛，辞职”，与警方发生紧张对峙。警方随后使用橡皮子弹、水炮和催泪瓦斯驱散人群。

阿尔巴尼亚总理将抗议活动归咎于“外国势力” （共3条，第1条）

阿尔巴尼亚警方在针对拉马的抗议活动升级之际发射橡皮子弹（共3条记录，此为第2条）

阿尔巴尼亚暴力冲突持续，抗议者指控警方暴行（共3条，此为第3条）

市中心的商店和机构都用金属卷帘门锁住了门窗，而市政工人则移走了铺路石，以防止抗议者使用。

阿尔巴尼亚新闻媒体 TV Klan 的记者林迪塔·卡拉达库 (Lindita Karadaku) 周日告诉半岛电视台，很难看出动乱将如何发展或会持续多久。

“拉玛总理意志坚定，他已明确表示不会辞职，而参与抗议的年轻人也同样意志坚定，他们也明确表示不会轻易放弃，”她说。“目前，没有人知道明天会发生什么。”

2026年10月18日，在阿尔巴尼亚首都地拉那，反政府示威活动中，防暴警察躲在水炮后面，抗议者投掷烟花，双方发生冲突。[Boris Grdanoski/AP]

拉马周日在社交媒体直播中表示，“政府没有受到挑战”，但他暗示，该国持续不断的动荡可能会影响阿尔巴尼亚加入欧盟的进程。

拉马说：“阿尔巴尼亚人需要想清楚。他们想要的是现在这样，还是加入欧盟？”

阿尔巴尼亚希望在2030年之前获得成员国地位。

抗议者要求改善教育、增加就业机会、停止所谓的持续腐败，并要求拉玛辞职。

据当地媒体报道，地拉那的示威者主要攻击政府机构和警察，包括教育部大楼和拉马办公室周围的区域。

自 2013 年上任以来一直担任总理的他，将抗议活动的激增归咎于“外国势力”的介入，并表示他的政府正在尽最大努力解决腐败问题。

2026 年 10 月 18 日，阿尔巴尼亚地拉那，一名抗议者在学生反政府抗议活动中投掷燃烧弹 [Louisa Gouliamaki/路透社]

与此同时，他表示愿意倾听学生合理的诉求，并讨论教育成本问题。但他坚持认为，必须追究破坏财产者的责任。

地拉那政治分析家门托·纳扎尔科在接受半岛电视台采访时表示，拉马似乎并不理解“问题的深度，没有找到解决办法，浪费了很多时间”。

“他的合法性已经荡然无存。在他和民众之间，除了警察之外几乎什么都没有：警察缺乏应对抗议活动的训练，薪水微薄，而且部分警察还与犯罪和腐败分子勾结，”他说。

根据卫生部周日上午发布的报告，冲突造成65人受伤，其中37人为警察，12人住院治疗。卫生部表示，自周二以来，冲突已造成272人受伤，其中包括169名警察。

阿尔巴尼亚的不满情绪已持续数月。今年该国首次抗议活动被称为“火烈鸟革命”，始于5月。示威者反对在阿尔巴尼亚南部兴建一个备受争议的豪华旅游综合体项目，该项目与美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的女婿贾里德·库什纳有关。