"Chaos mounted in Tirana on Sunday as thousands of anti-government protesters, led by opposition leader Sali Berisha, clashed with police while demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama's resignation over a corruption scandal involving Deputy PM Belinda Balluku. Footage shows explosions and fire burning behind a line of police as protesters hurled petrol bombs at the government building. Officers were seen facing demonstrators while trying to extinguish the flames. The demonstrators, attending a rally led by Sali Berisha, gathered around him on arrival, holding Democratic Party flags and signs reading 'Albania: 404 error. Democracy not found, and 'Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves', before tensions escalated. "Take to the streets like in 1991. Come out and face us, because you have obligations to our families and to the citizens who trust us. Come out, because it can never be acceptable for a gang like this to privatise the state and everything within it," Berisha called for mass mobilisation during the protest. At least one protester was reported injured during the event after being burned by flames from the Molotov cocktails. It comes amid allegations that Deputy PM Balluku and other state officials used state funds to benefit certain companies in major infrastructure projects, totalling roughly €210 million. On November 20, 2025, the Special Court ordered Balluku removed from office and barred her from leaving the country. Prime Minister Edi Rama refused to enforce the ruling and appealed to the Constitutional Court, which last week reinstated her, suspending the lower court's order until a full hearing on January 22, 2026. On December 18, SPAK asked Parliament to lift her immunity to allow her arrest, citing a risk she could use her position to destroy evidence."