Student-led protests in France and Albania escalated into violent clashes on Thursday as police deployed tear gas and water cannons against demonstrators.
In Albania’s capital, Tirana, protesters hurled stones, firecrackers and Molotov cocktails at riot police, who responded with tear gas and water cannons for a third consecutive day. Fires engulfed trees and structures in the city center, while footage showed demonstrators tearing down police barriers and throwing tear-gas canisters back at officers. Shops, banks and government buildings were damaged or looted, with burnt-out vehicles and smashed windows left across the city. The protests, initially over education costs and quality, have expanded into a broader challenge to Prime Minister Edi Rama’s government, with students joining the Flamingo movement opposing a luxury resort project linked to Jared Kushner and demanding Rama’s resignation over corruption allegations. Police reported 71 officers injured, while hospitals treated 26 people, including protesters and bystanders .
In France, teenagers protesting for better-resourced schools clashed with police, who used riot-control weapons that left some demonstrators with severe injuries. Authorities reported over 8,000 arrests in recent weeks, with more than 900 officers and nearly 150 teachers wounded. Police have opened internal investigations into 36 allegations of officer violence, including a 15-year-old who lost a hand in a stun grenade explosion and a 14-year-old with facial fractures from a grenade launcher .
