TIRANA, Aug. 19 – Albanian authorities have tightened security measures following this week’s deadly terrorist attacks in Spain.
Local media report anti-terror forces have increased their level of security following the deadly attacks in Barcelona, where 13 people were killed and dozens injured in a van attack at a tourist area.
The anti-terror forces have already been on alert in the past couple of months as the country is facing an influx of Albanian immigrants returning home for their summer vacations and dozens of thousands of tourists have picked Albania as their summer destination.
Police sources says measures have been tightened at the border crossing points with Kosovo and Macedonia, the two main hubs in Albania’s ‘patriotic’ tourism,’ dominated by ethnic Albanians from neighboring countries.
The level of alertness has also been raised in tourist areas and other public spaces while intelligence services have increased exchanges of information with their partners.
A country with a majority Muslim population, but where religious co-existence is hailed as an example to be followed, Albania has not been affected by terrorism so far although the authorities say they foiled several attempts, including a planned attack on the November 2016 Albania-Israel World Cup qualifier.
About 100 Albanians joined ISIS by mid-2014, but there been no new reported cases of Albanians travelling to Syria or Iraq as of 2015.
