Albania will ban TikTok after stabbing incident

Albania has announced a one-year ban on TikTok. The intention is for the measure to come into effect at the beginning of 2025.

“There will be no more TikTok in Albania,” Prime Minister Edi Rama announced the decision. “No one will be able to use it for a year.” He kept open the possibility of extending the ban.

The ban is a response to the death of a 14-year-old boy in a stabbing at a school last month. This was reportedly preceded by an argument via social media. Videos of the incident were also shared on social media.

Prime Minister Rama cited TikTok as one of the causes of the violence. “The problem is not with our children, it is with us. The problem is that TikTok and other social media are holding our children hostage.”

The TikTok ban is part of a broader package, which also includes the deployment of officers, training and attempts to involve parents more. The government presented the plans after consultations with parents and teachers in recent weeks.

Social media, popular among young people, is under fire in more countries. Countries such as Belgium, France and Germany have announced restrictions, and Australia even wants to ban everyone under 16 from social media.

TikTok has “urgently requested clarification” from Albania. The Chinese company says the young people involved in the deadly incident did not have TikTok accounts at all. The videos of the stabbing are also said to have been shared mainly via other social media.

An opposition politician calls the ban an overreaction. He calls it a restriction of freedom of expression and democracy.