A frightening night of phone calls between the Presidency and the Government. Çelo’s replacement; Hajdari is rejected The Guard: Berisha clashes with Fino The President orders: The Guard onto the streets to keep the peace The Prime Minister reacts angrily: “Never, that is the police’s duty. I am in command here” THE MONARCHY ERUPTS IN THE SQUARE TIRANA - A frightening confrontation between Berisha and Fino. Just a few hours after the Socialists’ victory in the June 29 elections, the head of state sounded the alarm over the threat to public order. “Use the Republican Guard to protect Tirana and the National Bank.” This was the essence of Berisha’s order, which was immediately rejected by the Albanian Prime Minister, who called it a “violation of the law.” An agitated night of phone calls between the two powerful men, orders and counterorders between the Presidency and the Government, as well as demands to appoint Azem Hajdari to the post of the minister who had departed for Greece, suddenly overturned a situation that had been expected to become tense, but instead calmed down. The news that Interior Minister Shaqir Çelo was leaving office was the starting point of the conflict between the President and the Prime Minister. But the warning, the day before, that police vans would be stationed even outside the presidential residence was also one of the reasons for Berisha’s sharp reaction. The two powerful men found themselves in a bitter confrontation. Sharp statements, explanations, comments, and accusations against one another were made yesterday at the luxurious Rogner Hotel in the capital. And Fino recounted the difficult moments of that night. “It was about 1:00 at night when the President called me. To tell the truth, I wasn’t expecting him to call at that hour. It had been a long time since we had communicated directly, and from what I could make out, I wondered what all that fuss was about.” This is how Prime Minister Fino began his account to the Gazeta, just a few hours after the clash with Berisha. “I could tell he was nervous...” On page 3 The two powerful men enter the fray: Each insists. Do you want calm? Then give me what I want. The clash between the two reaches dramatic moments at midnight On page 3 Interior Minister Çelo calls his new subordinate, Sokol Bare: “Hello, is anything happening in Tirana? I’ll be there on Thursday afternoon and we’ll work together” On page 3

Yesterday’s Legalist rally in Tirana (Photo: Plator Ilo) On page 3 Yesterday’s Legalist rally in Tirana (Photo: Plator Ilo)

Party corridors buzz with projections of the government ministers On page 5

Berat, massacre at the station, two dead

VLORA / The flames were threatening the city too

Dozens of cases at the Infectious Diseases Hospital Hundreds of cases in the Infectious Diseases Hospital Alarm in Tirana: Typhoid returns TIRANA — It has reappeared, once again after a period of interruption. Intestinal typhoid is what has recently struck several residents of the Capital, following the hospitalization of patients with gastroenteritis at Tirana’s Infectious Diseases Hospital. But this time the sick people were not admitted to hospital; they were treated as outpatients. The information has come from the Ministry of Health. Sources close to the ministry say that the number of people affected by typhoid is small. On page 7

Berat, massacre at the station, two dead BERAT — A shooting massacre on a passenger bus. The man marked for death by his rivals turned two young women into human shields against the bullets; they became victims of three volleys. The attackers fired from a car with no license plates and then left without a trace. They were masked, but the motives for their attack were unknown. Fate was merciless to 22-year-old Evis Qose from Berat. The student was waiting to leave for Tirana with her sister — she had to sit her exams at the Faculty — when the unexpected happened. It was 6:00 yesterday morning when the tragedy occurred near the passenger station, where people were waiting to travel by bus. A car with no license plates sped toward the crowd, and from its windows several automatic weapons [vëzhllier?]. The bullets were intended for Namik Çami, 35, who was also among the crowd. But, sensing danger, he put his arms around the shoulders of the two Qose sisters and tried to hide behind them. The two girls, suddenly caught in the line of fire, were shot and fell to the ground covered in blood. Evis Qose lost her life, while her sister Brikena was seriously wounded. Çami himself was also riddled with bullets by the unknown assailants, who sped away in their car. The people waiting to travel from Berat toward Fraka and farther on were powerless to defend themselves; Brikena Qose and a woman were miraculously saved. Brikena was rushed to hospital in a passing car, and doctors confirm that her condition is extremely serious. The unknown killers now bear one more charge and one more sin; cruel fate struck an even greater blow to a young woman who was preparing to answer questions before her professors.

VLORË / The flames threatened the city too VLORË / Flames threatened the city too Fire engulfs the fuel tanks: Danger forces residents to evacuate VLORË — Fear and panic on the outskirts of Vlorë. An unexpected fire broke out early yesterday morning near the fuel tanks, which were at risk of exploding. Firefighters managed to put out the flames twice, but their source remains unknown. Residents of the surrounding area, at Pusi i Mezinit, were forced to abandon their homes and retreat, joining the firefighters in trying to avert an impending disaster. Reinforcements arrived on the outskirts of Vlorë from Fier, Lushnja and Ballshi, but the fire was brought under control only with great difficulty. Many questions remain about what caused the blaze. Sabotage involving theft from the supply network to the giant tanks has been “blamed.” On page 5

Yesterday: 1 USD, 175 lekë TIRANA — The conclusion of the first round of parliamentary elections was followed by a noticeable drop in the value of the US dollar and other currencies on Albania’s currency-exchange markets. In recent days, the price of the green banknote has fluctuated and yesterday fell to 175 lekë, making it even harder to predict the trend in exchange rates in the coming days. On page 2

From yesterday’s SP rally TIRANA—“Partyt Atdhe, the most beautiful song”... The well-known music of Pietër Gac(i)t echoed yesterday in Skënderbej Square in the capital. The Socialists’ music then continued with other, more youthful rhythms — they wanted/began [to] sing their (…) tune of electoral victory. Now certain of victory in the June 29 elections, Nano’s people celebrated yesterday, starting before 7:00 p.m. and ending after 8:00 p.m. in the capital’s central square. The history of this rally was accompanied by much discussion. According to many reports, many people from the districts were also supposed to take part in the Socialists’ victory celebration, but this could not be arranged. Only days after the elections was Tirana’s large square put “in the sights” of the victors, but the Police did not guarantee that it could take place peacefully. A few days later, apparently it became possible, and the SP celebrated, with thousands of people taking part and expressing their enthusiasm after the elections in front of the two leaders, Chairman Nano and Prime Minister Fino.

THE ARMED FORCES Minister Vukaj warns of a “storm” “There will be many cuts, but on a professional basis” On page 5