Former Albanian Prime Minister and opposition leader Sali Berisha has been released from house arrest, which was imposed on him nearly a year ago.
The Special Court for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime “decided to accept Berisha’s request and to cancel the house arrest order.”
However, the corruption charges against the 80-year-old leader of the main opposition Democratic Party have not been dropped. He was placed under house arrest on December 30 last year for refusing to appear in court in connection with a corruption investigation.
In October 2023, Berisha and two others, including his son-in-law, were charged with corruption related to the privatization of state-owned land in the capital Tirana. The privatization took place in 2008, when he was prime minister.
Berisha has always rejected the bribery charges, calling them “purely political.” He accuses Prime Minister Edi Rama of being behind them.
Meanwhile, Gazment Bardi, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, hailed Berisha’s release as a “victory for the opposition.”
In addition, the court has banned the former prime minister from communicating with anyone other than “family members who live with him.”
But every evening, Berisha addressed a small crowd of supporters who gathered outside his home in the capital Tirana to listen to his anti-government speeches.
He also gave daily online press conferences.
His arrest sparked regular opposition protests in Tirana, some of which turned violent, including in parliament.
Berisha was the first democratically elected president of Albania since the fall of communism in the early 1990s, serving a five-year term as head of state.
He then served as prime minister of Albania for eight years until 2013.
He is banned from entering the US and UK in 2022 over his alleged involvement in organised crime and corruption - charges he denies.
Washington has accused Berisha of "embezzling public funds and interfering in public processes" for the financial benefit of his family and allies. | BGNES
