Fabian Zhilla

Experts have expressed dismay after Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on Wednesday raised the possibility of again allowing online gambling, saying the move would be harmful and regressive.

Aacknowledging his government's failure to crack down on the industry, Rama said gambling activity had continued despite the ban his party imposed a few years back.

Data that BIRN has obtained show that while only three cases of indoor cannabis cultivation were recorded during 2021, the number of cases rose to 18 by May this year.

BIRN asked police for data over the last five years, but they did not have records for before 2021.

Family members of Albanians held in Syria urge the government to help their repatriation on 14 September 2020. Photo: Nensi Bogdani/BIRN

A new study by the Open Society Foundation for Albania, presented in Tirana on Friday, reveals how organised crime, business, judiciary, and politics have been tied together for years in a complex relationship based on common interests and exploitation for mutual benefit.

Albanian police spokesperson Genti Mullai told media on Monday that officers are investigating people believed to have been responsible for an Islamist attack threat to Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri.

"We don't have anyone under arrest yet, but we are interviewing people who have information about this threat and those who might be behind it," said Mullai.