Albanian opposition supporters clash over party leadership

By LLAZAR SEMINI
Associated Press

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albanian police have intervened to move away protesters at the headquarters of the country’s main opposition party. Police on Saturday used a water cannon truck and tear gas, and scores of officers pushed back hundreds of protesters who had stormed the ground floor of the center-right Democratic Party’s headquarters. A group led by former party leader Sali Berisha used iron bars and hammers to break open the main doors of the building. Berisha accuses the party’s current leader of being a “hostage” of Prime Minister Edi Rama and wants him removed. Prosecutors have started an investigation of the protest violence.