Albanian prosecutor: Ex-premier’s call for arms no crime

TIRANA, Albania – The prosecutor general’s office in Albania says it will not take legal action against the country’s former prime minister for his call to citizens to arm themselves.

Sali Berisha was sued by lawmakers from the governing Socialist Party in April after he accused the government of having links to criminal gangs and urged Albanians to get weapons to protect themselves.

Gun ownership is illegal in Albania and Berisha asked for a new law to allow citizens to possess weapons.

The prosecutor’s office said in a statement Sunday it considers Berisha’s words “a political viewpoint … for which he should bear no legal accountability.”

Berisha stepped down as prime minister and as leader of the centre-right Democrats party in 2013 after the party was defeated in a parliamentary election.

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