TIRANA, Feb 10 (Reuters) – Anti-government protestors clashed with police in Albania’s capital Tirana on Tuesday evening as thousands gathered to demand the resignation of the deputy prime minister over alleged corruption.
Demonstrators hurled petrol bombs at a government building and police responded with water canon in the latest in a string of violent protests that pose a threat to the stability of Prime Minister Edi Rama’s long hold on power, which began in 2013.
Political tensions have escalated since December after a special prosecution unit indicted Rama’s deputy, Belinda Balluku, for allegedly interfering in public tenders for major infrastructure projects and favouring certain companies, charges Balluku denies.
Thousands of people at the main square in Tirana carried flags and banners and chanted “Rama go home, this corrupted government should resign”. Special police in riot gear protected the government building.
The Special Prosecution Office, tasked with combating corruption and organised crime, has requested that parliament lifts Balluku’s immunity this week to enable her arrest.
It is not clear when the parliament, where Rama’s ruling party holds a majority, is expected to vote or if it will vote at all.
(Reporting by Fatos Bytyci and Florion Goga, writing by Ivana Sekularac; Editing by Edward McAllister)
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