Albania

University students gather at the Ministry of Education this afternoon to join a national protest calling for Prime Minister Edi Rama to step down. The demonstration coincides with a separate rally by the opposition Democratic Party. While the streets fill, students have also taken their grievances to the Constitutional Court to challenge government acts they say limit the right to protest.

The Prime Minister’s response to the current mood has been to reintroduce his 'Rocky Table' initiative, unveiling it as a new tourist destination in Tirana. Domestic pressure elsewhere continues through a request for a special investigation into a reported conflict between Mr Rama and the Mayor of Tirana, Erion Veliaj, and reports of a minister’s links to a villa in Dhërmi.

Police activity remains high after a series of arrests for cocaine possession in Lushnjë and the seizure of 77kg of cannabis in Shkodër. In the courts, prosecutors are seeking to confiscate €2m in assets linked to a cocaine laboratory in Frakull, while a more unusual case in Bulqizë continues after a man’s family testified that he sought a weapon after being disfigured by a bear.