Albania

BIRN has drawn up a timeline of the main events surrounding a massive cyber attack on the Albanian government and the data leaks that have followed.

Prosecution in Tirana on Wednesday requests arrest of five public administration staffers related to Iranian hackers' recent cyber-attacks on public institutions.

UN's culture organisation adds Montenegrin Croats' Festival of St Tryphon and an Albanian traditional dress known as the xhubleta to its List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Kosovo has the legal framework to protect labour rights, but implementation is falling short and putting lives at risk.

Honorary consuls are supposed to foster cooperation between two countries. In several cases involving Albania, they have dabbled in crime too.

Refugee groups says proposal would breach UN convention and put vulnerable people at riskUK politics live – latest news updatesRefugee charities have condemned as unworkable a plan put to Rishi Sunak by more than 50 Conservative MPs, arguing that asylum seekers from Albania should be summarily returned, as should those who say they have been […]

The joint opposition have announced their constitutional plans if they defeat President Erdogan in the next elections, which centre on restoring a parliamentary system with strong checks and balances.

British pop star of Albanian origin praised by president for spreading the nation’s fame internationally through her musicAlbania’s president has granted citizenship to the British pop star of Albanian origin Dua Lipa for what he said was the artist’s role in spreading Albanians’ fame internationally through her music.President Bajram Begaj said on […]

Report presented on Friday says the Dutch public has become more favourable to EU enlargement in the Western Balkan countries as a result of Russia's attack on Ukraine – though it still remains divided.

Special Prosecution Against Corruption and Organized Crime, SPAK, says cocaine seizure was the result of joint work with Montenegrin authorities who allowed the shipment to continue to its final destination.

Six people killed amid evacuations and significant damage, with Albania particularly badly hitIn Europe, flooding due to heavy rain has killed six people, prompted evacuations and caused significant damage in parts of the Balkans. Low pressure centred over southern Italy brought moisture-laden south-westerly winds across the region through the weekend. The […]

A historical drama by young Albanian film director Eduart Grishaj suggests that shared culture and human understanding can offer Albanians and Serbs a counter-narrative to prejudice, hatred and ethnically-motivated violence.

Resolution adopted on Wednesday says any advance in Serbia's EU accession negotiations should be linked to Belgrade's alignment with the EU on sanctions against Russia.

Two environmental organisations are suing the Albanian authorities over the contract for the construction of Vlora airport, claiming that the building work threatens important wetlands and biodiversity areas.

More than 80 European Parliamentarians have urged the European Commission to abolish roaming charges for Western Balkan countries in a letter sent to President Ursula von der Leyen.

Prosecution documents obtained by BIRN give a glimpse of the crime and corruption involved in the development of Albania’s coastline.

Far-right groups in the Balkans have long had a soft spot for the Italian fascism of the past. The new government in Rome can provide fresh inspiration.

Queried about rampant illegal construction, PM Rama claimed to have signed an agreement for the transfer of an illegally built space to government ownership but – responding to a BIRN FOIA - his office now says it doesn’t have the document, after all.

Heavy rains were blamed for the deaths of two people in Albania, three in Montenegro and a two-year-old boy in Serbia – while roads were blocked and some schools in Serbia and Albania were closed.

Seven international media freedom organisations expressed concern about the deteriorating media climate in Albania after visiting the country on a fact-finding mission.

Far-right and extremist groups are a major threat in the Balkans as they have deep roots in society and exert a significant influence, a BIRN conference in Sarajevo concluded.

Author and journalist Fatos Lubonja, who spent 17 years in prison under the Albanian Communist regime, relives his bitter experiences in a new book that recounts the suffering of inmates who were his friends.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network has published an interactive map providing detailed information about scores of far-right and extremist organisations in six countries in the Balkans.

The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg ruled that Turkey violated a Greek Orthodox Church organisation’s right to register its property in Istanbul.

Public institutions in Kosovo and Albania are failing to protect the personal data of the people.

Albanians are crossing the Channel for a variety of reasons – desperation, crime, disillusionment… Whatever is driving them, the consequences for the society they leave behind will be dire.

Opposition questions hurried plan to sell Durres Port to unnamed private investor who is allegedly promising to turn into a luxury marina and build a new port north of the town.

The Albanian authorities have made no comment about an alleged leak of files from the State Information Service, including names of employees, that were reportedly stolen by Iranian hackers.

A widespread failure to understand how Meta’s fake news fight is run has left independent fact-checkers in the crossfire. The falsehoods keep coming, often from politicians who are spared the scrutiny.

In the northern highlands, there’s no work. In the capital, corruption blocks the path to success for young graduates – and it’s no surprise there’s an exodusOn Tirana’s embassy row, it has been all go for his majesty’s ambassador to Albania, Alastair King-Smith.The crisis in relations between the two countries, arising from the boats crossing […]