Albania’s capital descended into chaos on Tuesday as a student-led protest over education and employment turned into hours of violent clashes. Demonstrators stormed public buildings, set fires across central Tirana and confronted riot police, while reports suggested as many as 40 people had been detained.
TIRANA, Oct. 13 (BalkanView) – Violent clashes erupted across Albania’s capital on Tuesday as a student-led demonstration escalated into widespread unrest, with protesters breaking into municipal buildings, setting fires in the streets and confronting police using tear gas and water cannon.
The unrest, which continued for more than eight hours, spread from the Ministry of Education to several central districts, including Skanderbeg Square, Durrës Street, the Tirana municipal headquarters and the New Bazaar area.
Local media reported that between 23 and 40 people had been detained during the disturbances, although the figures could not immediately be reconciled. Police were reported to have detained 23 people earlier in the evening, while the newspaper Panorama subsequently put the number at 40.
Several police officers, journalists and protesters were injured.
From student demonstration to street violence
The protest began at around 2 p.m. outside Albania’s Ministry of Education, where students and young demonstrators gathered to voice grievances over education and employment.
Tensions emerged almost immediately as some protesters threw eggs and other objects at the ministry building and sprayed slogans on its walls.
The confrontation escalated when demonstrators removed metal railings and paving bricks, throwing them at the building and smashing windows.
Some protesters entered the ministry’s grounds, while others attempted to force open its entrance.
According to Top Channel, police intervened about an hour after the initial disturbances, forming a security cordon and deploying water cannon to disperse the crowd.
Officers also used batons and tear gas as clashes intensified.
Television footage and eyewitness reports described protesters throwing firecrackers, stones and other objects at police, while masked demonstrators placed metal barriers across roads to obstruct police vehicles.
Despite repeated attempts to disperse the crowds, protesters regrouped and moved through central Tirana.
Protesters break into Tirana City Hall
The violence subsequently reached Tirana’s municipal headquarters, where demonstrators threw stones and flares at the building.
Some protesters broke through the entrance and entered the premises before police arrived and began detaining participants, according to local media.
The disturbances also spread to surrounding commercial areas.
Groups of demonstrators reportedly damaged private businesses, smashed windows and removed furniture, some of which was subsequently set on fire.
Burning rubbish containers were used as makeshift barricades, while traffic lights and other public infrastructure were damaged.
Residents fight fires from balconies
One of the most alarming incidents occurred near Tirana’s New Bazaar, a commercial and residential district known locally as Pazari i Ri.
According to Top News journalist Xhoi Malësia, protesters set rubbish containers ablaze and ignited an area near a market structure made partly of wood.
Residents responded by throwing water from their balconies in an attempt to contain the flames before emergency services could intervene.
Police arrived in the area as some demonstrators fled to avoid detention.
The incident highlighted the danger the spreading unrest posed to residents and businesses beyond the original protest locations.
Journalists and police among the injured
The violence also raised concerns about the safety of journalists covering the demonstrations.
Local reports said two female journalists were injured during the disturbances, while separate police information cited one injured journalist and six injured officers.
Albania’s Audiovisual Media Authority called for particular attention to the protection of journalists after reports of attacks on television crews by masked protesters.
Footage circulated by local broadcasters also showed confrontations between police and young demonstrators, including an incident in which a protester reportedly suffered a broken leg.
The circumstances surrounding the injuries and the use of force had not been independently established.
Albanian authorities also rejected unverified reports that two students had been placed on ventilators, urging the public not to circulate unconfirmed information.
US Embassy warns citizens to avoid demonstrations
As the unrest spread, the United States Embassy in Tirana advised American citizens to avoid demonstrations.
The warning came amid reports of blocked roads, burning barricades and continuing confrontations between protesters and security forces.
By late Tuesday evening, groups of demonstrators remained active in different parts of the capital, despite repeated police operations to disperse them.
A new challenge for Albania’s authorities
The unrest represents a significant escalation of a demonstration initially focused on education and employment grievances.
What began as a student protest developed into a wider confrontation involving damage to public institutions, attacks on private property and allegations of excessive police force.
The disturbances also raised questions about the authorities’ handling of public demonstrations and the protection of peaceful protesters, journalists and residents.
The immediate political consequences remained unclear late Tuesday.
Authorities had not announced a final number of arrests or injuries, while the full extent of the damage to public and private property was still being assessed.
The events have placed renewed attention on the grievances of young Albanians and the government’s ability to address them without further confrontation.