Brian Ghilliotti: US Army Presentation Project: Albanian Clan Focus

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A Summary of Threats US Government Employees Facein Albania

Gheg – Tosk Regional Clan Conflict

Presented by SGT Ghilliotti

CENTCOM

July 30, 2015

Overall Classification:

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AIT Training Product

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Purpose

• US Government personnel stationed in Albanian face avariety of threats, ranging from regional nationalliberation movements, organized crime, and clantensions

• Battalion Commander has instructed us to focusresearch on those threats that are in closest proximityand pose the greatest threat

• Battalion S2 has identified Albanian regional clan rivalry

as the threat that meets both criteria

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Albanian Regional Clan Divides

• Albania’s most serious outbreak of civil disorderoccurred when security forces nearly disintegratedduring the 1997 national investment scheme collapse

• Many lost their savings, and nationwide riots ensued

• Albanian police and military mostly deserted, somejoined the protests(1)

• Crisis exposed a regional divide between the northernAlbanian “Gheg” clans and “Tosk” clans

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• Tosks, by reason of geography, were more exposed tooutside influences and see themselves as more“educated” and the Ghegs as “backwards”

• The Ghegs, residing in the northern mountainous region

of Albania, see the Tosks as “traitors” who do notrepresent true Albanian culture.

• Ghegs outside influence due to mountainous geography

• Sali Berisha, the Albanian PM at the time of the 1997

crisis, is a Gheg, and his party, the Democratic Party, isprimarily supported by Ghegs

• The opposition Socialist Party is mostly supported byTosks (2)

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• The 1997 demonstrations were mostly concentrated in theSouthern Tosk regions and slowly spread northwards

• Since large numbers of police and military deserted,protestors looted large numbers of weapons from armories

• Albanian security forces restored order in north, andBerisha permitted Ghegs to access unlooted armories sothey could arm themselves in self-defense(3)

• Civil war was averted when Berisha agreed to step downfor new elections, which the Tosk supported Socialist Partywon.

• Albanian political process largely a function of Gheg / Toskdivide(4)

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• Most of the looted weaponry was never returned, much of itbeing distributed by Albanian mafia groups to the Albanianinsurgent movements in Kosovo, Presevo, and Macedonia(5)

• Further disturbances occurred in 2004 and 2011.

• In February 2004, protests erupted in the capital city ofTirana against the currently ruling Socialist Party overclaims of corruption, election rigging, and failure to addresseconomic issues.

• The Albanian PM at the time, Fatos Nano, stepped downafter early elections in 2005 that the Socialist Party lost(6). He was replaced by Sali Berisha of the DemocraticParty.

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• In January 2011, more protests erupted, this timeagainst the Democratic Party

• Opposition Socialist Party claimed Berisha rigged the2009 elections and accused Socialist Party leaders of

corruption (7)

• Protest marches were also held in two southern Albaniancities, four people died in demonstrations in Tiarana(8)

• By 2013 the Albanian Socialist Party was back in power

after another round of elections

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• More unrest erupted as recently as November 2014 inTirana as the opposition Democratic Party accused theSocialist Party of corruption and failure to improve theeconomy (9)

• None of these cycles of unrest reached the level ofviolence seen in 1997 as grievances did not cross theGheg / Tosk clan divide.

• These protest cycles were more a reflection of regional

clan political rivalry than general discontent (10).

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Conclusions

• US government employees must be aware of volatilitytrends in Albanian clan politics, as it has led to civil disorderin the past, and can create personal security challenges

• If the political climate is too divided by clan rivalry , apolitical leader can always try to unite the political

landscape by exploiting an ethnic crisis in a neighboringcountry

• This can put the US Government and its employees in adelicate and dangerous situation should it mediate betweenAlbanian clans or rival nations to de-escalate tensions

• If there is any perceived partiality on the part of the USGovernment, then personnel, property and equipment canbe targeted in retaliation by Albanian radicals

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Questions?

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Notes

1. Unknown author. “Albanian Civil War”, GlobalSecurity.org. Page last modified: June 26th, 2013. Date accessed: July 17,2015. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/albania.htm

2. Shkullaku, Ghent. “Albanian Protests and Potential Regional Consequences”, Stratfor.com, January 22nd, 2011, dateaccessed: July 14, 2015. https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-regional-consequences-.html

3. Stasiuk, Andzej. On the Road to Babadag: Travels in the Other Europe. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, June2011, pg. 107.

4. Shkullaku, Ghent. “Albanian Protests and Potential Regional Consequences”, Stratfor.com, January 22nd, 2011, dateaccessed: July 14, 2015. https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-regional-

consequences-.html5. Shkullaku, Ghent. “Albanian Protests and Potential Regional Consequences”, Stratfor.com, January 22, 2011

6. Unknown author. “Fatos, Nano, Albania”, European Security Initiative, May 2008, date accessed: July 28, 2015. http://www.esiweb.org/ index.php?lang=en&id=280&portrait_ID=45

7. Shkullaku, Ghent. “Albanian Protests and Potential Regional Consequences”, Stratfor.com

8. Unknown author. “Albania Riots”, American Intelligence, February 4, 2011, date accessed: July 28, 2015. http://americanintelligence.us/ albania-riots/

9. Semini, Llazar. “Anti-government Protest in Albania’s Capital”, Associated Press, November 22, 2014, date accessed: July17, 2015.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-2845422/Anti-government-protest-Albanias-capital.html 10. Shkullaku, Ghent. “Albanian Protests and Potential Regional Consequences”, Stratfor.com

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-2845422/Anti-government-protest-Albanias-capital.htmlhttp://americanintelligence.us/http://www.esiweb.org/https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-http://www.globalsecurity.org/


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Sources

Semini, Llazar. “Anti-government Protest in Albania’s Capital”, Associated Press, November 22, 2014. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-2845422/Anti-government-protest-Albanias-capital.html

Shkullaku, Ghent. “Albanian Protests and Potential Regional Consequences”, Stratfor.com, January 22nd, 2011 https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-regional-consequences-.html

Stasiuk, Andzej. On the Road to Babadag: Travels in the Other Europe. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Unknown author. “Fatos, Nano, Albania”, European Security Initiative, May 2008, date accessed: July 28, 2015.

http://www.esiweb.org/index.php?lang=en&id=280&portrait_ID=45

Unknown author. “Albania Riots”, American Intelligence, February 4, 2011. . http://americanintelligence.us/albania-riots/

Unknown author. “Albanian Civil War”, GlobalSecurity.org. Page last modified: June 26th, 2013. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/albania.htm

Images

Slide 6: Unknown author, “Albanian, Gheg in Albania”, Bethany World Prayer Center , undated. Date accessed: July 19th,20015

http://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/11880/AL

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http://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/11880/ALhttp://www.globalsecurity.org/http://americanintelligence.us/http://www.esiweb.org/index.php?lang=en&id=280&portrait_ID=45http://www.esiweb.org/index.php?lang=en&id=280&portrait_ID=45https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-https://wikileaks.org/gifiles/docs/37/371305_fw-albanian-protests-and-potential-http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-2845422/Anti-government-protest-Albanias-capital.html

Brian Ghilliotti: US Army Presentation Project: Albanian Clan Focus

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