Blog
News

Reflecting higher emigration, remittances to Albania hit decade high

TIRANA, Dec. 14, 2023 – Reflecting renewed emigration, remittances to Albania during 2022 saw a significant increase, reaching the highest levels of the past decade, data released by Eurostat this week reveals. According to Eurostat, remittances exceeded €1.2 billion in 2022, a 5.8% increase compared to 2021.  This high value …

Read More
News

Albanian Constitutional Court suspends approval of Rama-Meloni agreement

TIRANA, Dec. 14, 2023 – Albania’s Constitutional Court has suspended the approval process for the contentious deal with Italy to establish a third-country migrant processing camp in Albania under Italian jurisdiction. The court has instructed parliament not to proceed with the vote on ratifying the deal until the court makes …

Read More
News

Gerdec File, Special Court to hold hearing on former Minister Mediu

The hearing on the Gerdec case will take place this Thursday.  It is learned that the former Minister of Defense has appeared before the GJKKO. Journalist Ermal Vija told ABC that several people are also expected to testify, including Shkelzen Berisha and Aldo Bumçi. /abcnews.al […] Read More… Original post …

Read More
News

Democrat accuses guard of not allowing MPs to enter Parliament

Opposition MPs clashed this Thursday with the Republican Guard officers while trying to enter the Parliament hall. During the tensions, the head of the democratic parliamentary group, Gazment Bardhi, has emphasized that it is the guards who are not allowing the MPs to enter the session. Situation is tense today, …

Read More
News

Parliament approves regulation on expelling MPs for up to two months

This Thursday’s plenary session in the Parliament of Albania started about 20 minutes late, but lasted only 8 minutes. Tensions accompanied the session from its start, where MPs from Sali Berisha’s Foltorja clashed with the Guard of the Republic, which did not allow them to enter the hall. Although they …

Read More
News

Head of SP’s group accuses opposition of causing chaos to protect Berisha

Head of Socialist Party’s (SP) parliamentary group, Bledi Çuçi spoke about this Thursday’s tensions in the Assembly. During his speech in a communication to the media, Cuci said that everything is done only to protect former Prime Minister Berisha. According to him, the opposition’s request for the establishment of Investigative …

Read More
News

EU-Western Balkans Summit, Rama: Albania was evaluated positively

Prime Minister Edi Rama at the press conference clarified details about yesterday’s meeting held in Brussels. He said that the European Union has expressed a positive assessment of the work that Albania has done on its way to membership. “The perspective of our countries towards EU was discussed, the process …

Read More
News

Moving car shot with gunfire in Tirana, noboby injured

A 42-year-old man reported to the police that a person shot a gun at the car he was driving. No one was injured from the shooting, while the incident took place on “Don Bosco” street. The investigative group has started work to clarify the alleged case. Therefore, the 42-year-old, Rudolf …

Read More
News

Senior citizen dies in Lushnja house fire

A house was engulfed in flames during the early hours of this Thursday morning in Lushnja, where an elderly person lost his life as a result. according to the police, the 82-year-old man died. The investigative team is working to fully clarify the causes of the incident. /abcnews.al […] Read …

Read More
News

Begaj to meet Bulgarian counterpart in Sofia

President of the Republic of Albania, Bajram Begaj, will pay an official visit to Sofia this Wednesday, at the invitation of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev. Agenda foresees the “head-to-head” meeting of the presidents of the two countries, the meeting of the respective delegations, as well …

Read More
News
Albania’s TikTok Ban Violated Free Expression, Court Rules

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

News
Albanian Parliament Under Cyberattack Linked to Iran

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 …

News
Belinda Balluku: Albanian PM’s Loyal Ally at Centre of Political Firestorm

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

News
Parliament Blocks Arrest Bid for Former Deputy Prime Minister Balluku

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 …

News
Albanian Ruling Party Refuses to Support Lifting of Former Deputy PM’s Immunity

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

News
Monday Briefing from the Balkans: March 9, 2026

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

News
Do the Balkans really want EU membership?

By Daniel Serwer Tirana Times, March 06, 2026 – While all eyes are on the Iran war, subtle but important changes are taking place with respect to the Balkans. I think the two most important are these: The Trump Administration is abandoning state-building and instead wants local people to make the basic …

News
Marx on the Beach

By Zef Preci Tirana Times, March 06, 2026 – Two centuries ago, Karl Marx offered a blunt description of how capitalism is sometimes born and consolidated: through what he called “primitive accumulation,” a historical process—often violent—by which people are separated from their land and productive assets, while wealth is concentrated …

News
Week in Review: Friends, Foes and Chocolate Thieves

From European Union accession hopes to ongoing corruption investigations, our selection of Premium stories this week takes a look at the political wheeling and dealing going on behind the scenes in the region. Original post Here

News
The Biblical Dog and our chances for full EU membership 

by Genc Pollo Let’s start with the dog. “As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly,” says the Old Testament (Proverbs 26:11), offering a blunt metaphor for stupidity and the stubborn repetition of mistakes. That proverbial dog may be the right analogy for Prime Minister Edi …

News

Albania’s TikTok Ban Violated Free Expression, Court Rules

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

News

Albanian Parliament Under Cyberattack Linked to Iran

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 …

News

Belinda Balluku: Albanian PM’s Loyal Ally at Centre of Political Firestorm

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

News

Parliament Blocks Arrest Bid for Former Deputy Prime Minister Balluku

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 …

News

Albanian Ruling Party Refuses to Support Lifting of Former Deputy PM’s Immunity

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

News

Monday Briefing from the Balkans: March 9, 2026

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

News

Do the Balkans really want EU membership?

By Daniel Serwer Tirana Times, March 06, 2026 – While all eyes are on the Iran war, subtle but important changes are taking place with respect to the Balkans. I think the two most important are these: The Trump Administration is abandoning state-building and instead wants local people to make the basic …

News

Marx on the Beach

By Zef Preci Tirana Times, March 06, 2026 – Two centuries ago, Karl Marx offered a blunt description of how capitalism is sometimes born and consolidated: through what he called “primitive accumulation,” a historical process—often violent—by which people are separated from their land and productive assets, while wealth is concentrated …

News

Week in Review: Friends, Foes and Chocolate Thieves

From European Union accession hopes to ongoing corruption investigations, our selection of Premium stories this week takes a look at the political wheeling and dealing going on behind the scenes in the region. Original post Here

News

The Biblical Dog and our chances for full EU membership 

by Genc Pollo Let’s start with the dog. “As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly,” says the Old Testament (Proverbs 26:11), offering a blunt metaphor for stupidity and the stubborn repetition of mistakes. That proverbial dog may be the right analogy for Prime Minister Edi …