Albanian government

The European Federation of Journalists, European Centre for Press & Media Freedom, PEN International and Reporters Without Borders criticised on Wednesday new restrictive laws on online media in Albania.

The laws were proposed by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama as part of his drive against "defamation".

Tirana, Dec 3 /Agerpres/ - Today, fake news is no longer a phenomenon but a true communication strategy in the hands of a few people or groups which try to use the 'fourth power' for purposes often hostile, said the General Director of the Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA), Armela Krasniqi, on Sunday, at the opening of the international conference on the topic of "News Agencies

Government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos on Monday called on Albanian authorities to avoid inflammatory rhetoric in the wake of the fatal shooting of an ethnic Greek man by Albanian police in southern Albania on Sunday.

The European Court of Human Rights has criticised the Albanian government's "inappropriate approach" in 2014, when it tried convince the court to adjourn its examination of cases concerning the restitution of property seized under the Communist regime.

The court emphasized that both Albania's official and non-official attempts to influence the court had been rebuffed.

They asked the government in Tirana to push for the rights of Albanians in Serbia and to increase its presence regarding investments in Bujanovac, Medvedja and Presevo.

Saip Kamberi, the Mayor of Bujanovac, told this to the press at The Palace of Serbia in Belgrade. There he attended the session of the Coordination Body for the municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja.

BELGRADE (Sputnik) - NATO is planning to build its first air base in the Western Balkans near the municipality of Kucove in central Albania, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said on Saturday.

The International Commission on Missing Persons, ICMP is still awaiting parliamentary ratification of the Albanian Council of Ministers' decision on June 7 to start work on the search for missing victims of the Communist regime.

A spokesperson for the ICMP confirmed that the organisation is still waiting for final approval.

Proposed flag carrier Air Albania, a joint venture being negotiated with Turkish Airlines, will begin flying European routes this summer with a view to making its first transatlantic flights by December, one of the men behind the venture has told BIRN.

After eight years of talks, the Albanian government approved an agreement with the International Commission on Missing Persons to find and identify some of the 6,000 victims killed by the Communist regime.

The ministry warned Macedonian citizens to stay away from places where protests are due to take place on Wednesday afternoon due to the potential for "escalation", and to avoid reacting to the rallies in any way that might jeopardise their safety.