Thousands of young Albanians marched through Tirana on Friday, breaking some windows and traffic lights on the fourth day of an increasingly violent student-led campaign to force Prime Minister Edi Rama to resign, Reuters reported.
The demonstrations, which are spreading through the country, turned into a riot in the capital on Thursday, with protesters smashing windows, raiding a bank and clashing with police. They follow months of mostly peaceful demonstrations that the students say the government ignored.
The students accuse officials of corruption and neglecting education and say they are angry about the sale of pristine parts of Albania's coast to a luxury resort development backed by US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. The Times reported that protesters set alight the first floor of the Education Ministry, targeted the prime minister's office, parliament and other ministerial headquarters, and threw stones and petrol bombs, while police responded with tear gas and water cannons.
Rama has refused to resign. "We will not bow to violence," he said on Facebook, according to Reuters. In a statement shared with the Times, he said governments are changed through democratic elections, not revolution, and that he was key to tackling corruption before potential EU accession. Rama won a fourth term last year on promises to take Albania into the European Union and is aiming for membership as early as 2028.
Protests have also spread to Lezha, Elbasan, Skhodra and Korca, where demonstrators broke windows and set fire to garbage bins, according to local media cited by Reuters. Some small businesses put up notes saying: "We are with you. Do not damage our business." A 19-year-old protester told Reuters they had protested peacefully for 140 days and nothing was heard, so this was their only chance to be heard.