At least 28 people have been injured this Sunday in Tirana, the capital of Albania, in a new wave of disturbances and clashes with security forces, according to data provided by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare of the country to the state agency ATA.
Of this balance, 23 injured were transferred to the University Hospital of Traumatology. Among them are 17 police officers, one underage protester, one media professional, and four passersby who were in the area during the incidents.
Another five people — two police officers and three protesters — went to the Mother Teresa University Hospital Center seeking medical attention. Medical authorities have detailed that, since the spike in tension began on October 13, 14 affected individuals remain hospitalized and are receiving ongoing treatment.
The situation has worsened especially after the assault on police station number 3 in Tirana, where groups of hooded individuals attacked the building by throwing Molotov cocktails, fireworks, and stones, causing new injuries and material damage.
The director general of the State Police, Skender Hita, confirmed to the state agency that ten officers were injured in this attack, emphasizing that all of them were part of the security cordon of the facility and had not intervened in the operations of previous days. "I want to be very clear with everyone. An attack on a police station is not a protest," Hita has stated, urging peaceful participants to distance themselves from those who resort to violence.
This new wave of altercations has its origin in the citizen protests called to denounce the high cost of living, the shortcomings of the educational system, and corruption in government institutions.
The escalation in the streets contrasts with the position of the Albanian Prime Minister, Edi Rama, who this Sunday ruled out resigning and warned that his resignation in this context would jeopardize the accession negotiations with the European Union.
"It is not a matter of my power. (...) What is at stake is the negotiation table with the European Union," Rama has stated in a public broadcast, defending that an institutional break now could delay the advancement of the Balkan country for years.
The head of the Government has shown willingness to meet with the protesters at the headquarters of the Executive or at university campuses to listen to their demands, although he has insisted that the State will act against those who continue to use explosives and seek to impose their claims through chaos and violence.