TIRANA, March 12, 2026 – Albania’s Parliament, dominated by Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party, has refused to authorize the arrest of former Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, blocking a request by the Special Prosecution Against Corruption and Organized Crime, SPAK, and triggering one of the gravest confrontations yet between …

Ruling Socialist Party uses its majority in parliament to vote down a prosecution request to lift former Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku’s immunity, allowing for her arrest. Original post Here

Survey of women who gave birth recently reveals a “pervasive yet often hidden crisis of obstetric violence” and a widespread dissatisfaction with medical care. Original post Here

Brussels has already gone cold on a scheme to allow some aspirant countries like Albania and Serbia second-tier membership – but that doesn’t mean that other creative approaches to European enlargement are off the table. Original post Here

Journalists’ union welcomes ruling that says government-imposed one-year ban on social media platform was a ‘violation of freedom of expression and freedom of the press’. Original post Here

Tirana Times, March 10, 2026 – A cyberattack targeting Albania’s Parliament has revived one of the country’s most serious national security concerns, underscoring the return of a threat that Albanian institutions have come to associate with Iran linked retaliation. The breach, confirmed by Parliament on Tuesday, involved unauthorized access to …

The criminal charges facing former Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku have dominated headlines in Albania for months – prompting her boss, Edi Rama, to pick a fight with the judiciary. Original post Here

Shielding Balluku Could Cost Albania More Than a Court Case. Tirana Times, March 09, 2026 – Albania’s ruling Socialist majority moved Monday to block the arrest of former Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, in a decision expected to be ratified by parliament this week and one that is rapidly becoming …

Ahead of a vote in parliament on Thursday, the ruling Socialists reject a prosecution request to support lifting the immunity of dismissed former Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, allowing for her arrest. Original post Here

Catch up on the weekend’s most important developments with Balkan Insight’s digest of news from countries across the region. Original post Here