Croatia Blocks Second Albanian Food Shipment Over Safety Concerns

Following the recent blocking of a shipment of peppers from Albania, Croatian authorities have once again intercepted another Albanian product at the border. This time, the shipment consisted of pistachio cream (pistachio paste) found to contain...

Meet Mira Murati, the 36-year-old Tech Prodigy Who Shot to Fame at OpenAI and Now Runs a Startup that’s a Poaching Target for Zuckerberg

She may not have the same name recognition as other tech execs like Tim Cook, Bill Gates, or Mark Zuckerberg—not yet, anyway—but Mira Murati is one of the most-watched entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. The former chief technology officer from...

Refugee to researcher: What my journey from conflict to academia taught me about healing divides

I WAS EIGHT years old when I learned that survival could mean losing everything. My family fled Kosovo on foot, trekking for days across the mountains into Albania. My father and older brother were taken. Later, I would learn they had been...

No DP nominee—now banking on independents in Tirana

The opposition’s year-long protests outside Tirana City Hall to oust Erion Veliaj finally yielded a win—Democrats and Socialists joined votes to remove him. But the DP arrived at that moment without a Plan B. Who would be their credible pick to...

World’s First AI Minister is Pregnant With 83 Kids

Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama has made a bizarre announcement that the world’s first AI government minister, Diella, is “pregnant” with 83 digital children. Speaking from Berlin during the Global Dialogue (BGD), an international forum held...

Rama seeks Gulf investors at Riyadh summit

RIYADH, Oct. 27 — Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has joined Saudi Arabia’s high-profile investment summit in Riyadh as his government looks to draw Gulf funding for major energy and infrastructure projects. Rama was welcomed by Prince Mohammed...

World AFP 'I found hell': the women ensnared in Albania's global sex trade

From Venezuela, Maria travelled halfway around the world in search of a better life. Instead, the mother of two was trapped in Albanian detention for months after being lured into illegal sex work. Maria, 38, is among a growing number of women...

‘I found hell’: the women ensnared in Albania’s global sex trade

'Maria' is one of a growing number of victims of sex trafficking in Albania - Copyright AFP KAREN MINASYAN Briseida MEMA, Camille BOUISSOU From Venezuela, Maria travelled halfway around the world in search of a better life. Instead, the mother of...

Meet Mira Murati, the 36-year-old tech prodigy who shot to fame at OpenAI and now runs a startup that’s a poaching target for Mark Zuckerberg

She may not have the same name recognition as other tech execs like Tim Cook, Bill Gates, or Mark Zuckerberg—not yet, anyway—but Mira Murati is one of the most-watched entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. The former chief technology officer from...

Rescuing Lake Prespa through cross-border activism

"Three countries, two lakes, one destination," says Greek environmentalist Mirsini Malakou, who has worked toward this vision in the Balkans for 30 years. Malakou is head of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP), a Greek non-governmental...

Marina Cino Pagliarello – The Meloni method after three years in power

Giorgia Meloni’s time as prime minister of Italy has been marked more by style than substance – eventually that will catch-up with her. Dr Marina Cino Pagliarello is a Visiting Fellow at the LSE’s European Institute, and a Senior Research...

France’s Macron and Albanian leader caught laughing at Trump’s repeated confusion over where he thinks he’s ended wars

Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our...

Slovenia blocks Albanian peppers over pesticide residues

A shipment of peppers from Albania was blocked by Slovenian authorities after testing revealed pesticide residues exceeding legal limits. The case was classified as an "alert" under the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF). The peppers...

Nov 9 set for mayoral by-elections in Albania

TIRANA, Oct 1 (TemA) — Albania will hold mayoral by-elections on Sunday, Nov 9, in Tirana, Vlora, Berat, Mat, Tepelena and Cërrik, after the president issued the decree within the 48-hour window. For Tirana, the presidency says the dismissal was...

Iran's school for cyberspies could've used a few more lessons in preventing breaches

Iran's school for state-sponsored cyberattackers admits it suffered a breach exposing the names and other personal information of its associates and students. The Ravin Academy was established in 2019, ostensibly to train individuals in all facets...

Diaspora4Innovation: From Venice to Albania, Knowledge Without Borders Turning into Action

In a world where knowledge and innovation know no boundaries, collaboration between resident and Albanian diaspora scholars, is becoming increasingly important for the future of education, research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in Albania. The...

Translators and Scholars: United to Protect the Albanian Language

Translators, linguists, and writers came together in an event titled “Translation, Time Boundaries, and Language”, organized at the National Center for Books and Reading in cooperation with the Albanian Translators’ Association. The gathering...

Rescuing Lake Prespa through crossborder activism

"Three countries, two lakes, one destination," says Greek environmentalist Mirsini Malakou, who has worked toward this vision in the Balkans for 30 years. Malakou is head of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP), a Greek non-governmental...

Moldova's experience with sub-granting as tool for social cohesion at regional level promoted by EcoContact at UNDP conference in Tirana

EcoContact Association brought to the forefront the experience of the Republic of Moldova in using sub-granting as a tool for social cohesion, during the UNDP learning laboratory Managing the political dimensions of social cohesion in Europe and...

SHOCKING: World's First AI Minister 'Pregnant' With 83 Babies!

Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama made international headlines with a quirky announcement: the world's first AI minister, Diella, is "pregnant" and will soon "give birth" to 83 children. Before you wonder how an artificial intelligence can...