Greek Nationalists Flood Albania Village for Gunman's Funeral

Several hundred Greeks, some of them holding anti-Albanian and anti-Macedonian insignia, attended the funeral of Kostandinos Kacifa on Thursday in the village of Bularat in southern Albania, hailing him a national hero.

Media reported that several buses and other vehicles traveled from different towns and cities in Greece across the border to Albania.

Some of the passengers chanted anti-Albanian slogans and waved a Greek flag on which it was said: "Northern Epirus is Greece and Macedonia is Greece."

The local municipality of Dropull said it had decided to cover the cost of the funeral, because the family of the victim was in need.

Kacifa, 35, was killed by Albanian police after opening fire with a Kalashnikov on 28 September, when Bularat, known in Greece as Voulariates, was celebrating Oxi Day, a national holiday in Greece that commemorates the start of the Greek-Italian War in 1940.

Following the killing, Greek nationalists organized protests and several hate incidents were registered against Albanian property in Greece.

Before the funeral, the Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Civil Protection appealed to participants in the funeral "to show restraint".

Albanian media reporting from the village said police were not present for the funeral, apparently trying to defuse tensions.

The funeral ended in the afternoon without incidents.

Greek nationalists have long laid claim to southern Albania, which they call Northern Epirus. Parts of southern Albania have historically been an ethnic border zone with a mixed population of both Albanians and Greeks.

Albanians were expelled in several waves from the Greek side of the border during the first half of the 20th century, with the biggest expulsion registered in...