Ida Ismail
A fight over a word and… a student in the hospital. This is not a movie scene. It's a school day in Albania.
In March 2026, two events in Durrës and Shkodra brought back the same anxiety: Small conflicts escalating into extreme violence. The question is no longer “What/why happened?”, but “why does it keep happening?”.
Conflicts between teenagers They no longer need a strong reason. A banal debate, a post on social media, a word thrown in the hallway is enough.
The result is the same: Stabbing, injury, sometimes fatal events.
The cases are numerous., but the pattern is the same. An intervention to break up a fight ends in murder. An online conflict ends in tragedy near a school. March is not an isolated case, but the continuation of a chain of events that have been repeating for years, despite the existence of a national project for school safety, undertaken 8 years ago that aimed to prevent such phenomena.
2023 – Gramsh
A 15-year-old, Fatjon Bici, loses his life after intervening to break up a fight between his peers.
An act to avoid violence, which ends in tragedy.
2024 – Tirana, “Fan Noli” school
A conflict started on social media ends with the murder of 14-year-old Martin Cani.
Another student was injured. The perpetrator, also a minor, was later sentenced to 16 years in prison.
2024 – Tirana, “Kolë Jakova” school
Another 14-year-old is injured during a fight between students.
May 2025 – Maliq
A conflict between 14 and 15-year-old minors ends with stabbing injuries.
November 2025 – Durres
A 15-year-old boy is stabbed on school grounds.
December 2025 – Saranda
A 13-year-old is stabbed for weak motives.
December 2025 – Shkodra, near the “Shejnaze Juka” school
A clash between teenagers leaves two injured with cutting tools.
March 2026 – Durres, Shënavlash
A conflict between students at a 9-year-old school ends with a minor being injured with a knife.
March 2026 – Shkodra
A group of teenagers are involved in a violent clash, with injuries.
Lawyer Alban Duraj, who has followed some of these cases, defines the situation as a national alarm. According to him, murders and injuries among peers are part of a complex phenomenon where social trauma, silent violence and the lack of preventive policies are intertwined. “The law on criminal justice for minors requires a focus on rehabilitation. The law on child protection guarantees support.”
And the bottom line is: The laws exist, but timely intervention is lacking.
Official figures and reality on the ground
On paper, we are in order: Laws, strategies, national projects. In practice, there are serious events.
Since 2018, the figure of the school security officer has been presented as a solution. The “Safe Schools-Security Officers” project was presented as a new mechanism to prevent violence, conflicts and problematic behavior among students. However, field data and the KLSH report highlight a number of problems, which are also a consequence of events in schools.
According to the State Police, in 2023-2025, 193 conflicts were identified in schools and 285 cases were prevented. However, the audit of the Supreme State Audit for 2025 states that the school security process has not functioned at the level of expectations, due to the lack of a consolidated regulatory framework and insufficient supervision. According to the KLSH report, there is no clear legal basis, reporting of incidents is informal and often distorted. A survey by the KLSH with 227 students in various schools in the country results in 15.8% having seen cold weapons at school and 25.9% having observed the use of drugs, alcohol or tobacco.
One of the strongest findings of the SAI is related to the way data is collected:
"The electronic link from the Agency for Quality Assurance in Pre-University Education (ASCAP) does not constitute a state database, as it was not created by a normative act and there is no legal obligation to use it."
This means that the national reporting system is practically informal. The report further states: “The reported data does not correspond to the reality of school safety and contains elements of self-censorship. School safety officers have stated pressure from school leaders not to report incidents, in order to preserve the image of the institution.”
We contacted several security officers, who expressed their willingness to speak once permission is granted by the Ministry of Education. As of the publication of this article, we have not received any response from the institution.
Regarding school security officers, the SAI has identified a lack of basic equipment such as computers and printers, a lack of sufficient training, and a failure to conduct physical checks. This is because in 5 audited schools, only in one case was a physical check conducted during the entire audit period.
Education expert Ndriçim Mehmeti says that the "Safe Schools-Safety Officers" project was sold as a great achievement, but failed before it was even implemented.
"Alarm bells have been ringing for a long time, but we don't want to hear about it. The project seems to have been done to employ a few people and not to help the school, the parents and the children."
Mehmeti cites as an example the incident at the "Fan Nolit" school, where the security officer, with the greatest irresponsibility, declared: "I thought they clarified and shook each other's hands and this conversation ended."
According to him, the problem is not the lack of structures on paper, but their real dysfunction.
The report highlights that cooperation with the State Police is unregulated and often dysfunctional. According to the instructions, security officers must notify the area policing specialist (SPZ), who then notifies the police structures. However, in practice, the SPZ covers several schools, often does not react and in some cases the initiated files are dismissed for lack of documentation.
Political debate and promises
The issue of school safety has also entered the political debate. Mundësia party MP Erald Kapri stated that violence is many times higher than official reports, referring to a report by "Save the Children" that suggests the phenomenon is twice as high.
On the other hand, Minister Kumbaro described violence as a global phenomenon influenced by social networks and highlighted the government's efforts: "329 security officers are present every day in schools with a large number of students. 1183 psychologists and social workers are active in the system."
In September 2025, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced another measure: the installation of smart cameras in schools: "Higher security in schools, the registration system will be accessible by the State Police, parents and school principals." But so far, these measures remain mainly at the level of declarations.
The problem is not that we don't know what to do. The problem is that we know and we don't do it.
And every time we don't, another little hassle is waiting to turn into tragedy.acqj.al
