Anti-government protesters broke through police cordons and attempted to storm Albania’s parliament during a major opposition-led rally in Tirana on Saturday.
Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowd, many of whom had come prepared with gas masks.
The angry mob threw stones and smoke bombs at police, pulling down security fences that were erected ahead of the demonstration.
The rally drew thousands of protesters from across the country, gathering on the central Heroes of the Nation boulevard ahead of the event.
Opposition Democratic Party leader Lulzim Basha was cheered when he appeared in the crowd, leading them on a march to the Office of Prime Minister Edi Rama, where police were already positioned.
Shortly after, the crowd moved to the parliament, where violence erupted, leading to riot police being deployed onto the streets.
Opposition leaders announced that they plan to block the streets surrounding parliament for several days in an attempt to bring down the Socaialist-led government of PM Rama in an escalation of the demonstrations that started a month ago.
At least one protester was incapacitated by tear gas inhalation and a police officer was seen attending to a colleague, who appeared lightly injured.
Ahead of the demonstration, Albania’s Western allies criticised the opposition in allowing violence at the protests and urged for demonstrators to show restraint.
The US embassy in Tirana issued a statement on Friday saying: “While peaceful protest is a fundamental pillar of democracy, inciting or committing acts of violence, including the destruction of public property, is unlawful.
In a separate statement, the EU delegation in Tirana said: “Any form of incitement to violence is not tolerable. We urge once again all party leaders to show responsibility in avoiding any escalation during the protests.
The opposition and its supporters are calling for the government to step down and for early elections to be held. They accuse Rama’s regime of corruption, alleging the existing government has been “captured by crime”.