Albania to Ban TikTok for One Year, Starting Thursday

Albania will block access to the video platform TikTok for one year, beginning Thursday, according to local media reports citing the Authority for Electronic and Postal Communications (AKEP).

In December 2024, the Prime Minister, Edi Rama announced the TikTok but did not specify at the time when it would come into effect.

Rama explained that the ban was based on the assertion that content on TikTok poses a danger to children and young people.

Discussion about the potential harmful effects of TikTok emerged in Albania after a 14-year-old pupil was killed in a stabbing incident at the end of last year.

The two groups of youths involved had antagonised each other on TikTok and arranged a fight that ultimately turned deadly.

The media reports said that the AKEP has instructed all internet service providers in Albania via e-mail to block access to TikTok by Thursday and submit written documentation of their actions to the authority.

Source: dpa/NAN