Brusseles, 21 oct. -Most of these episodes involved police officers. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the violence and calls for sanctions against those responsible, the enforcement of existing measures to protect journalists’ safety and parliamentary scrutiny of the authorities’ response, Reports the Swiss Albanian-language newspaper LeCanton27.ch
RSF: At least 12 journalists and media workers were physically attacked while covering protests in Albania between 13 and 19 October
RSF has documented 28 reports of violence, intimidation and attempts to obstruct news reporting affecting at least 23 media professionals in Albania between 13 and 19 October. At least 10 episodes involved the direct use of physical force against at least 12 journalists, including hitting, kicking, pushing and forcing them to leave the area where they were reporting. Some journalists reported the seizure or attempted seizure of their phones and damage to their media equipment, as well as injuries from police crowd-control devices.
In addition to the threats received while reporting on the ground, journalists face intimidation by the prime minister of Albania, a country applying to join the European Union (EU). On 18 October, for example, PM Edi Rama baselessly accused the owner of News24 of fabricating accounts of student rebellion to bring down the government.
“Although the situation surrounding the student protests is tense, journalists must be able to document police conduct without being beaten, pushed away, detained or otherwise prevented from filming. If media professionals respect legitimate police instructions, police officers have to guarantee their equally legitimate right to report. The authorities must enforce the existing guidelines for journalists’ safety and sanction any aggressive behaviour by police officers and protesters. We also call on Prime Minister Edi Rama to stop intimidating the media for reporting on protests, which is their job. We call on the Albanian parliament to examine the police’s violent conduct, and on the EU to assess how the candidate country’s media-freedom commitments are playing out in practice.” / Pavol Szalai – Director, RSF Prague Bureau
On 18 October alone, at least eight media workers reported abuse at the hands of the police. According to The Association of Journalists of Albania (AGSH), police forcibly stopped photojournalist Hameraldi Agolli, who contributes to AP, as he was working, while News24 journalist Renaldo Salianji was physically struck by police. Taulant Kopliku told SYRI TV that an officer struck his shoulder and seized his phone, which was returned with his footage deleted. Meanwhile, SYRI TV reported that two of its own journalists were attacked by law enforcement in separate incidents: Marshi Korreshi was hit in the back with a helmet and pushed while she reported live on a fire at Police Station No. 3, and Elkier Bushkolaj was wounded in the leg by a police rubber projectile. Journalist Juljan Hoxha and photojournalist Felix Bilani were reportedly hit on the legs by police officers, who pushed the reporters with helmets to move them away from the prime minister’s office. AGSH also alerted that Klan News journalist Glidona Daci was struck by stones in an incident attributed to police officers.
Reuters reported that two of its journalists were struck by rubber pellets while covering the clashes in Tirana on 17 October. Swiss freelance photojournalist Raimond Lueppken reported that, the same day, he was filming men dressed in black in the coastal city of Durrës when two other men in plain clothes approached him and demanded that he delete the recording, which he refused to do. According to RSF information, the group he had filmed wore vests bearing police insignia. He suspected that the two men were connected to that group, but their identity and police status were not confirmed.
One of the most brutal cases occurred at the start of the protests, on 13 October. Izmir Akulli, editor-in-chief of the online outlet Dosja.al, was taken to hospital after several police officers kicked and punched him near the Bank of Albania while he was filming their interaction with a student. According to his published account, the violence continued even after he identified himself as a journalist.
Attempts to obstruct news reporting continue, as on the evening of 19 October, police prevented News24 journalist Osman Stafa and other media workers from following and filming police detentions in the side streets off Rruga e Dibrës in Tirana, according to News24.
Safety commitments must be enforced
According to a statement by the SafeJournalists Network released on 18 October, the Albanian Police Oversight Agency began examining alleged misconduct and seven officers have been suspended. It remains unclear whether those measures concern cases involving journalists.
In an open letter co-signed by RSF on 14 October, media-freedom and civil-society organisations called for the full implementation of the Guidelines for the Safety of Journalists adopted by the state police in May 2025, for independent investigations into alleged violence and obstruction by the police oversight bodies, and for a dedicated parliamentary hearing on the issue. Further incidents were nevertheless reported after that appeal.
Albania ranks 83rd out of 180 countries and territories in the RSF 2026 World Press Freedom Index.