Latest News from Albania

Albania Urged to Ensure Proper Care for Psychiatric Patients

A report published by the Council of Europe's Committee for Prevention of Torture on Tuesday after a three-day visit to Albania said that there is an urgent need to establish a specialised forensic psychiatric facility in the country to accommodate and treat male and female forensic psychiatric patients.

The EU wants Bulgaria to lift the Veto on North Macedonia by June 2022

"I will come to Sofia as often as necessary in order to reach a decision (lifting the Bulgarian veto on North Macedonia's membership in the EU) by the end of June, we have no time, the war has shown us how important the European integration is."

Encrypted Phone Crack No Silver Bullet against Balkan Crime Gangs

When a French and Dutch-led police operation cracked the code to Sky ECC in February 2021, investigators gained access to a treasure trove of real-time evidence against a host of international crime gangs.

Thousands of people have been arrested around the world based on the Sky ECC takedown; in the Balkans, Saric is the biggest, but he is far from alone.

One killed, several injured as 5.7 quake shakes Bosnia

A 5.7-magnitude earthquake rocked southern Bosnia late on April 22, killing one person and injuring several others, local media reports said.

A 28-year-old woman who was injured when a rock fell on her house in the town of Stolac, near Mostar, died in hospital, a medical source quoted by media said. Several others were lightly injured, including members of the victim's family.

Fugitive Albanian Ex-Police Officer Convicted of Drug Trafficking

Albania Special Prosecutors Office in Tirana. Photo: Albanian Prosecution Office.

Tirana's Special Court Against Organised Crime and Corruption found Sokol Bode, chief of police in the southern Albanian village of Dhermi, guilty in absentia.

Bode has been on the run since Italian police cracked a cannabis smuggling ring dubbed 'the Habilaj Brothers.'

War in Ukraine Hits Albania’s Hopes of Tourism Revival

Ukrainians made up a significant proportion of the holidaymakers visiting Albania before the pandemic - and with war keeping them at home, tourism businesses are worried.

North Macedonia Arrests Border Officer for Alleged Bribe-Taking

North Macedonia's deputy Interior Minister, Nazim Bushi told media that one officer at the Blace border crossing with Kosovo has been arrested after Albania's Klan TV published video footage that it claims shows how North Macedonian border officials there take bribes.

Powerful Albanian Businessmen Pick up Struggling TV Channels

Powerful, politically-connected businessman Shefqet Kastrati has entered Albania's crowded media market with the purchase on Monday of Euronews Albania, following in the footsteps of Samir Mane who bought TV SCAN last month.

German Foreign Minister: Bulgaria needs to clear up Problematic Issues with North Macedonia

"Bulgaria to clear the problematic issues related to Skopje, so that North Macedonia and Albania can start membership negotiations in the first half of the year."

This was called for by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock after the meeting of European Union foreign ministers last night in Luxembourg.

Germany states: "New era"

Olaf Scholz called for accelerating the accession of the Western Balkans to the European Union, which has been blocked for years, mentioning a "new era" in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
At a joint press conference with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised to help advance the issue.

Kosovo’s Street Kids: Neglected at Home, and by the State

A lack of capacity in social welfare centres means that many children - mainly from Kosovo's Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian communities - are left to fend for themselves, forced into work from an early age despite the dangers. Despite the odd police operation against human traffickers or abusive parents, Kosovo's state institutions largely turn a blind eye.