Albania’s capital saw protests Sunday for a sixth day in a row as Prime Minister Edi Rama ruled out resigning, the main demand of the protesters.
Violent demonstrations have rocked Tirana since Tuesday, with thousands of protesters calling for Rama to step down as they rally against poor university conditions, high tuition fees and corruption.
Hundreds of protesters gathered again Sunday at noon in front of the education ministry chanting "Rama, resign" in a tense standoff with the police, who later used water cannons and tear gas to hold back the crowds.
Shops and institutions in the centre of the city have secured their doors and windows with metal shutters, while city workers removed paving stones to prevent their use by protesters.
In an over-an-hour long video broadcast earlier in the day, Rama ruled out resigning, stating that the protests are the "work of an outside hand".
Writer and activist Lura Elezi, 38, told AFP that she is protesting for "a better life, rule of law and against crime and corruption".
"I love my country, but my government does not respect us — it defies us. Every citizen must take responsibility for their country, taking on the duty to lead, to love, and not to destroy one's own nation", she said.
Tirana saw its harshest violence on Saturday when protesters threw rocks, Molotov cocktails, metal objects and pyrotechnic devices at police, and torched cars and litter bins, using them as blazing barricades to stop police advancing.
The protests continued into the night, with buildings -- including a court, banks and a post office -- set on fire or severely damaged.
In a sign of the escalating violence, police fired rubber bullets on the demonstrators for the first time since the protests began, AFP journalists on the ground saw.
Ambulances were seen rushing to pick up injured people as the protest entered its tenth hour.
According to the ministry of health report issued on Sunday morning 65 people were injured of which 37 were
police officers, while 12 were hospitalized.
Since Tuesday, 272 people were injured in the clashes, including 169 police officers, the ministry said.
Albania's close ally the United States reacted late Saturday evening, with its embassy in Tirana urging "restraint and calm on all sides".
This week's unrest comes after months of anti-government protests in the Balkan nation, initially sparked by a controversial resort development linked to US President Donald Trump's family.