Brawl in Albanian parliament as MP Flamur Noka seizes Balja's microphone
Session was suspended for five minutes after opposition MP Flamur Noka grabbed the microphone from ruling‑party MP Tauljant Balja amid ongoing anti‑government protests.
A physical altercation broke out inside the Albanian parliament when opposition MP Flamur Noka grabbed the microphone from Tauljant Balja, head of the ruling Socialist Party’s parliamentary group, and began throwing papers at him.
Session halted after on‑floor confrontation
Speaker Niko Pelesi suspended the session for five minutes following the incident, which occurred as Balja took the floor to present the majority’s position. Opposition deputies had earlier blocked the lectern with photographs of protesters injured during street demonstrations.
The clash happened on the tenth day of mass protests in Albania, during which demonstrators have demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama. Opposition MPs say normal parliamentary work cannot continue while protests and allegations of police violence are ongoing.
“Today there is only one item on the agenda. We condemn police violence. We must stand with the demonstrators, listen to their demands and the voice of the generation that is not afraid of the government. There can be no parliamentary discussion in conditions of social crisis,” read Belind Këlliçi on behalf of the Democratic Party’s parliamentary group.
On the session’s agenda was an interpellation of Interior Minister Ervin Dema, requested by the opposition over police actions during the protest in front of parliament. The minister’s planned questioning had already been postponed earlier with the explanation that Dema had only recently assumed the post and needed time to review open matters.
Earlier the same day Prime Minister Edi Rama renewed an invitation to protesters to enter dialogue, this time leaving written invitations on concrete benches instead of the chairs previously set out for talks; protesters had smashed those chairs in earlier days. Rama also warned of tougher measures against participants in violent demonstrations, including denial of some services and possible bans on entering European Union countries.
Photo: press material from the event
