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Home/Archive/Thursday, October 29, 2026

Archive

Thursday, October 29, 2026

36 stories

Previous day
All36Politics6Crime & Courts5Economy5Region5World5Sports3Culture4Opinion3

Politics

Only Politics
  1. 16:30PartiesTop Channel: Çuçi tells minister Gogu to resign over Veliaj's transfer; Balla does not deny itAccording to Top Channel, lawmaker Bledi Çuçi asked the justice minister for the mayor's transfer document at a meeting of the Socialist group. Balla does not deny it, but says the meeting was held behind closed doors.
  2. 13:40ParliamentPS seeks 10-day expulsion for Berisha and two months for six PD lawmakersThe Socialist group has turned to Speaker Peleshi and the Secretariat for Procedures, Votes and Ethics after the tense plenary session, citing language that incites violence and the use of smoke canisters.
  3. 12:45DiplomacyFerit Hoxha meets Canadian Ambassador Elissa Golberg, with a multilateral defense bank in focusThe minister for Europe and foreign affairs called Canada “a friendly country, a NATO ally and a trusted partner” and thanked Ottawa for its contribution to Albania's development.
  4. 12:10GovernmentRama invites students to dialogue again as protesters return to the Education Ministry demanding he quitThe prime minister posted images of a stone table inscribed “Dialogue” and said he is ready to consider any proposal. Students, on the 17th day of protests, are turning down the invitation.
  5. 11:30ParliamentParliament passes Bank of Albania law by 84 votes as PD lights flares in the chamberGovernor Gent Sejko cannot be arrested or searched over acts linked to his duties without Parliament's authorization. The session unfolded amid a blocked rostrum, smoke canisters and Berisha being stripped of the floor.
  6. 10:45GovernmentNufi: AAT has not started making weapons in Albania; “Combat Proven” does not mean “Made in Albania”The defense minister responds to Syri TV's “Plug” program, which raises suspicions about the company in which KAYO holds a 20% stake. “If you accuse, prove it!” he tells its authors.

Crime & Courts

Only Crime & Courts
  1. 15:35Crime & CourtsVeliaj refuses food in Fier prison; prisons service says transfer was legal and the order is a state secretThe Tirana mayor, held in pretrial detention, protested a day after being moved from Durrës, according to Top Channel. The prisons service says 24 transfers took place between Oct. 16 and 27, all within the law.
  2. 15:15PoliceMalësi e Madhe: 265 kg of cannabis and two mines found at Kukaj brothers' homes; four arrested, three soughtShkodra police's “Polinomi” operation, after a four-month investigation, hit a group suspected of trying to sell cannabis at home and abroad. The two anti-tank mines were handed over to army engineers.
  3. 13:35CourtsSpecial Court refuses to try Meta and Kryemadhi without lawyers, postpones hearing to Nov. 5Lawyers kept up their boycott, saying they had not been formally notified that it was suspended. The court appointed a lawyer for the next hearing, while Kryemadhi accuses SPAK of procedural violations.
  4. 11:50Crime & CourtsCustoms: 69.5 tons of coffee missing from a Durrës bonded warehouse; 17.8 million lek in duties and finesThe check was carried out by the Excise Control Directorate based on risk criteria. Unpaid excise amounts to 4.5 million lek, while the calculated fines total 13.3 million lek.
  5. 08:45Police29-year-old from Mat extradited from Germany, wanted by the anti-corruption court over a structured crime groupA. Gj. was arrested in Frankfurt after cooperation between Interpol Tirana and Interpol Wiesbaden. The Special Court had ordered him held in custody as early as May 2024.

Economy

Only Economy
  1. 16:45EconomyParliament passes new Bank of Albania law with 84 votes, laying legal ground for a digital lekThe law strengthens the central bank's independence and bans monetary financing of the government, but the governor's immunity was narrowed compared with the original draft.
  2. 13:30MarketsTransparency Board cuts diesel by 1 lek to 212 lek a liter from 3 p.m.; gasoline capped at 181New maximum fuel prices apply from Thursday afternoon under the special situation declared in the hydrocarbons market.
  3. 12:50BusinessAmCham and FIAA oppose 2027 fiscal package, warning tax hikes undermine investor confidenceThe American Chamber of Commerce and the Foreign Investors Association ask the government to reconsider raising VAT and the dividend tax, and to allow transition periods.
  4. 12:30MarketsBank of Albania sets euro at 90.83 lek; dollar slips to 81.53Thursday's official rate keeps the European currency close to October's record lows, while the US dollar loses 10 qintars on the day.
  5. 11:15TourismNew tourism bill: short-term rental apartments to register on e-Albania with a unique codeThe Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sports puts out for public consultation a law that defines mixed resorts and distributed hotels and sets up an office for resolving disputes.

Region

Only Region
  1. 16:59North MacedoniaMickoski offers students a 4,500-denar monthly meal allowance, for food only through an appNorth Macedonia's prime minister met student parliament representatives; the current amount is about 3,500 denars and the proposal awaits the students' response.
  2. 16:50North MacedoniaNorth Macedonia's interior ministry: eight arrested over eye-surgery scheme costing Health Insurance Fund €1.7 millionA criminal complaint targets 11 people and a private clinic in Skopje suspected of billing the same services to both the fund and patients.
  3. 14:20KosovoArlinda Zekaj killing: prosecutorial council suspends Peja's chief prosecutor, police suspend 11; Parliament sets up inquiryLumturije Vuçetaj and the case prosecutor face disciplinary proceedings, while lawmakers voted 90-0 for a parliamentary commission on the case.
  4. 12:35KosovoTwo arrested in Istog for war crimes, suspected in Padalishta massacre that killed 19 members of Imeraj familyThe Special Prosecution announces arrests in Osojan and Cërkolez; the Serb List speaks of three Serbs arrested “without convincing evidence.”
  5. 10:00KosovoStrategic Group and Qatar's Ocean B Holding target up to $2 billion in investment in Kosovo and AlbaniaThe Kosovo-based company and the Qatari holding sign a cooperation framework for energy, mining, health care and infrastructure; the figure is a target, not a commitment.

World

Only World
  1. 15:30EUEU-Canada summit opens in Montreal: “associate membership” dropped from declaration; Carney says name doesn't matterCosta and von der Leyen meet Prime Minister Mark Carney at a two-day summit aimed at an “Alliance for the Future.” EU governments watered down the Commission's proposal on Canada's status.
  2. 13:15EuropeRussian drone hits Dnipro railway station platform, killing 13; Zelensky calls it horrificThe drone struck a platform where a train for Zaporizhzhia was standing, Gov. Oleksandr Hanzha said. Ukrainian Railways says people were on the platform despite a danger warning.
  3. 12:30EUChristine Lagarde to leave the ECB on Feb. 7, 2027, nine months before her term endsThe European Central Bank president informed the Governing Council and European Council President António Costa that she will step down. EU leaders are immediately starting the search for a successor.
  4. 11:00EuropeMeloni: I don't regret being close to Trump; I defended Italy's national interestThe Italian prime minister defends her close relationship with the US president in an excerpt from journalist Bruno Vespa's new book. She says it helped keep dialogue open between Europe and the United States.
  5. 09:30WorldMerz in Seoul: North Korea threatens Europe's security with troops fighting alongside RussiaThe German chancellor and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung agreed to deepen defense cooperation. Before Merz arrived, Pyongyang fired about 10 short-range ballistic missiles.

Sports

Only Sports
  1. 16:20SuperligaTirana–Dinamo 1-1 in Durrës: 10-man Dinamo level through Hoxhallari as four are sent off in derbyRedon Xhixha put Tirana ahead in the 64th minute, but Erion Hoxhallari equalized for Dinamo in the 78th. Dinamo coach Ilir Daja was sent off before halftime and blamed the referee.
  2. 12:30International footballArmando Broja: 14 injuries in four years as his Burnley side hire Swiss coach Fabio CelestiniThe Albania striker left the pitch after 13 minutes in the weekend match. Burnley, 22nd in the Championship, appointed the former Basel coach four days after sacking Nicky Hayen.
  3. 11:30SuperligaEgnatia–Teuta tonight in Rrogozhina; Dede: For me it's an ordinary league matchThe 6:30 p.m. clash between the champions and the league leaders closes Week 9 of the Superiore. Teuta coach Edlir Tetova returns to the stadium where he won trophies with Egnatia.

Culture

Only Culture
  1. 14:30CultureGovernment approves draft law on National Art Fund: up to 10% of procurement savings for artworksThe fund will buy artworks and collections of historical value, selected by experts with support from the National Gallery of Arts. The law must be approved by Parliament and takes effect in January 2027.
  2. 12:30MusicTKOBAP brings world premiere of Vasil S. Tole's “Concerto Trinitas I, II, III” with pianist Amir XhakoviqThe concerto for piano and orchestra will be performed on Nov. 3 by the Symphony Orchestra of the National Theater of Opera, Ballet and Folk Ensemble under conductor Ermir Krantja.
  3. 11:30Film“The Other Side of Valias” at Korça Film Fest: AIDSSH documentary on the women and children of the internment campThe film by Rovena Rrozhani and Dorian Zanaliu reconstructs life in the Valias camp through archival documents and survivors' testimonies. In 1950 the camp held 820 internees, including 372 children.
  4. 10:00Culture“Days of Mio” in its 16th edition: Albanian and foreign painters at the International Colony in KorçaThe international art symposium dedicated to painter Vangjush Mio opened at his house-museum and runs until Oct. 31, also at the Guri Madhi Art Gallery.

Opinion

Only Opinion
  1. 16:47OpinionAn independent central bank doesn't need Parliament's permissionThe new law strengthens the Bank of Albania's independence in many ways, but the parliamentary filter on arresting the governor brings the bank closer to politics instead of shielding it.
  2. 16:35OpinionA prison transfer should not be a secret beyond scrutinyThe prison service says Erion Veliaj's move to Fier was lawful. The best way to prove it is to let an independent institution see the order.
  3. 15:30OpinionExpulsions won't calm the chamberBerisha's words and the smoke flares in Parliament demand a response, but disciplinary measures must come out of an impartial, evidence-based procedure, not just a request from the majority.

Calendar

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