The case was identified in the second 10-day period of August as part of intensified national surveillance for the virus, the Ministry said.

Since January, 30 samples from suspected WNV cases have been tested, all of which were negative. The latest case is the first confirmed infection in Albania in 2026, the Ministry of Health said.

The Institute of Public Health is continuing epidemiological surveillance, as well as epidemiological and entomological investigations into the confirmed case and monitoring of the situation.

WNV infections have previously been recorded in Albania. In 2024, authorities reported 107 confirmed cases and 50 probable cases, while two confirmed cases were reported in 2025, according to the Ministry.

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A High Court panel composed of Justice Ilir Panda, Justice Medi Bici and Justice Albana Boksi, reviewed Beleri’s petition demanding suspension of enforcement of the verdict by the First Instance Court of the Special Structure Against Corruption and Organised Crime and upheld by the Court of Appeals of the Special Structure Against Corruption and Organised Crime.

“The High Court decided to reject the petition filed by Dhionisios Alfred Beleri on suspension of enforcement of the verdict No. 14 dated 05.03.2024 by the First Instance Court of the Special Structure Against Corruption and Organised Crime and the verdict No.26, dated 25.06.2024 by Court of Appeals of the Special Structure Against Corruption and Organised Crime.

Last month, the Court of Appeals upheld the decision sentencing Beleri to two years in prison on vote-buying charges. He was arrested a day before the mayoral elections last May.

The Central Election Commission (CEC) nullified Alfred Beleri’s mayoral mandate in the southern Albanian municipality of Himara after the Appeals Court decision.

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The Independent Qualification Commission held its hearing session today to announce decision on re-evaluation of judge Engert Pellumbi.

The panel of judges including Pamela Qirko, Brunilda Bekteshi, Roland Ilia, after looking into established facts and evidence, decided to confirm Engert Pellumbi in his post as Fier Judicial District Court judge.

Judge Engert Pellumbi was evaluated by the Vetting Commission on three evaluation criteria, wealth, moral and professional integrity.

Engert Pellumbi was graduated from the Magistrates School in 2011 started his career in the country’s justice system after being appointed as judge at Fier court. Between 2017 and 2020, Pellumbi worked as a legal advisor to High Court and since November 2020 he has been serving as judge at Vlora Court of Appeal as part of the delegation scheme.

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The Ministry of Health said in a press release that tests on the samples sent to the Berlin-based Institute of Virology, Charite, where genetic tests on the sequence of the virus genome in these samples was performed, confirmed the presence of the Delta B.1.617.2 variant.

Confirmation of the Delta strain in Albania coincides with a spike in the fresh infection cases over the past two weeks.

The Ministry of Health appealed to every citizen to report to the nearest vaccination site and health care centre across the country to receive doses of the coronavirus vaccines as a way to avoid hospitalization and severe symptoms of the infection.

The Delta Sars-Cov2 variant is most contagious strain and therefore respecting physical distance and mask rule in indoor spaces and personal hygiene are vital to the efforts to contain spread of the virus.

A total of 1,134,085 people have been vaccinated since the launch of Albania Smiles immunisation campaign, with 496,714 of them having received both doses.

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After the notification issued by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) over the spread of the bird flu in several countries in the region and beyond, a plan of protective measures was drafted at the directive of the Agriculture Minister Milva Ekonomi.

After testing the samples collected from suspicious cases, the Institute of Food Safety and Veterinary (ISUV) confirmed the presence of H5N8 avian influenza virus (AIV). The disease outbreak was founded in the administrative unit of Fushë-Krujë, Dajt and in the administrative unit of Bujan.

The Veterinary Service specialists killed the birds suspected to have contracted the virus and took adequate measures to prevent further spread of the virus.

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TIA urges passengers to contact the airlines before each trip and the host countries for quarantine rules and to comply with hygiene protocols, emphasizing that wearing face masks is mandatory.

TIA also confirms that the residents in EU member states and EU citizens only are allowed to travel.

Tirana International Airport said the confirmed flights for Tuesday are as following:

Pegasus: Tirana –Istanbul and return

Wizz Air: Tirana – Milan and return

Lufthansa: Tirana – Frankfurt and return

Wizz Air: Tirana – Dortmund and return

Air Albania: Tirana – Milan and return

Air Albania: Tirana –Istanbul and return

Wizz Air: Tirana – Bari and return

Wizz Air: Tirana – Berlin and return

Wizz Air: Tirana – Verona and return

Air Albania: Tirana – Pisa and return

Air Serbia: Tirana – Belgrade and return

TUI: Tirana – Brussels and return

Alitalia: Tirana – Rome and return

Lufthansa: Tirana – Munich and return

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