Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said on Thursday, October 15, 2026, that he will not resign, as student-led protesters and police clashed in Tirana for a third day. Rama told Reuters governments change through elections: We had elections last year, not a revolution.
Protesters are demanding his resignation and more support for students, citing poor university conditions and high tuition fees. Rama gave his answer in written responses to Reuters, cited by The Guardian. The Guardian described the unrest as the biggest challenge yet to Rama, who won a fourth term last year.
Protests Spread From a Ministry Gate to the Provinces
The demonstration began Tuesday, October 13, as a peaceful gathering of several hundred people outside the Education Ministry, DW reported. It escalated quickly. The BBC, citing Albania’s state-run news agency, said 16 people were arrested that day in connection with violent acts
.
On Wednesday, part of the Education Ministry was set on fire, the BBC reported. The prime minister’s office, the finance and interior ministries and several businesses were also attacked. AP said at least four ministry buildings were damaged, and DW, citing Reuters, reported that a bank near the Education Ministry caught fire.
On Thursday, AP reported that youths hurled rocks at a police cordon outside the Education Ministry, and riot police answered with tear gas and water cannon. High school students joined marches through the centre of the capital chanting “Rama Resign!”
Protests also spread to smaller cities as students joined university boycotts, according to AFP.
Casualty Figures Differ by Source
DW cited police reports of around 40 detentions and 13 injured, including six officers, early Wednesday, and noted that unrest went on after those figures were issued. Later counts were higher.
🚨 ALBANIA ERUPTS: PROTESTERS TORCH EDUCATION MINISTRYViolent clashes engulfed Tirana as students demanded PM Edi Rama resign. Protesters set fires, hurled rocks and clashed with police using tear gas and water cannons.The unrest follows months of the “Flamingo Revolution,”… pic.twitter.com/1O6vK0eXmj
- The Health Ministry said hospitals treated 89 people on Wednesday, including 61 police officers (AP, AFP). Four officers and two protesters remained hospitalised, AFP reported.
- Police said 51 officers were injured and 65 people were arrested on suspicion of “attacking police officers, institutions, public and private property” (The Guardian, AFP).
- Tirana’s public hospital said seven injured protesters sought treatment (The Guardian).
The Tirana Times reported that police officers, journalists, demonstrators and a foreign diplomat were among the injured.
Rama Blames Political Opponents for Student Protests
In his first public comments since the protests began, Rama posted a video from a burned-out office of the College of Europe in Tirana, AFP reported. He said the ruin was left by hands that can never be, the hands of students
and blamed opposition figures. AP said he accused political opponents of inciting the violence.
Rama said he was ready to discuss the rising cost of education, but that attacking institutions and destroying property had nothing to do with students’ legitimate demands. He also said:
Perhaps some forces, at home and abroad, do not want Albania to succeed as a forerunner for E.U. membership. But I will not allow violence to derail Albania’s European future.
Edi Rama, Albania’s prime minister, to Reuters
Deputy Prime Minister Albana Koçiu called for calmness, self-restraint and maturity
and said Albania does not need to burn to change.
In a Facebook post, Albana Kociu called the violence “orchestrated” and said it reflected the “old habits of those who use young people to mask their own political incompetence,” while Mirela Kumbaro said “civic student protest and violence against public buildings and property are two different things.”
Protesters Demand Change as Opposition Backs Them
Protester Enida Bimi told Reuters the demonstration is for all the people of Albania
. Journalism student Teftalia Papa told AFP: We demand real change, not empty promises.
Lawyer Lulzim Tanushi called the government corrupt, Reuters reported. Organizer Mateo Yskollari wrote online that the response to any attempt at silencing them would be to expand the protest.
The opposition Democratic Party backed the protests and called for a caretaker government and early elections, AP reported. Rama’s Socialists won a fourth consecutive victory last year, and the next parliamentary election is not due until 2029. DW noted that the Socialists and Democrats have alternated in government for more than 30 years. Party leader Sali Berisha praised the students, Albania’s state news agency reported, according to the BBC.
Protests Join Movement Over Kushner-Linked Project
The student protests join a movement that began on May 31, according to the Tirana Times, over a tourism project at Zvërnec on Albania’s southern coast linked to Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law. The movement later grew into a campaign against corruption.
Reuters reported that villagers said their land was wrongfully sold, and that the seller was wanted by prosecutors for drug trafficking, which his lawyer denied. Reuters found no evidence of wrongdoing by Kushner, who is not directly involved in the villagers’ dispute.
Unrest Tests Albania’s 2028 EU Target
Along with Montenegro, Albania leads the EU accession process among Balkan countries and aims to join as early as 2028, Reuters reported. The EU delegation in Tirana condemned the violent escalation at the protest and the destruction of public and private property
, and urged protesters to refrain from violence. Its earlier statement, per AP, called for a proportionate response from authorities. The sources do not say whether the unrest affects the talks.
No source reports talks between students and the government, charges against anyone for organising the violence, or a date for the next protest. Yskollari said: We will be in the square every day.