The government of Albania is preparing to introduce a parliamentary resolution to declare Iran a state sponsor of terrorism, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced on Friday.
Speaking at a press conference, Rama said the Parliament of Albania will be asked to vote on the resolution next week. The proposal would also designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations.
“Parliament will be invited to vote on a resolution declaring the Khomeinist Republic of Iran — which I cannot call Islamic because, in my view, it has nothing to do with the Islam I know and respect — a state sponsor of terrorism,” Rama said.
Hezbollah, a militant group based in Lebanon and supported by Iran, is already designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and several other countries. The European Union has also previously listed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.
The move comes days after the Assembly of Albania was targeted by a cyberattack. Rama and Foreign Minister Ferit Hoxha told the parliamentary Committee on Security that the attack originated from Iran.
Rama said cyberattacks against Albania from Iran have been ongoing since 2022, occurring almost daily. While Albania has developed strong cyber defense capabilities—among the most advanced in Europe—he acknowledged that not all state institutions are yet fully integrated into the national protection network.
“Our problem is that we have not yet included the entire system within the protection network. There are no issues with the critical areas they might target. Iran attacks us every day, not just once. The attacks have never stopped,” Rama said, adding that critical infrastructure has so far remained protected.
Foreign Minister Hoxha warned that the breach of the Assembly’s technological infrastructure demonstrates the need for heightened vigilance. He added that the issue has been raised within NATO, and Albania has received assurances that it is not facing the threat alone.
Relations between Albania and Iran have been severely strained for years, particularly after Albania offered safe refuge to members of the Iranian opposition group Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK) more than a decade ago. In 2022, Albania severed diplomatic relations with Iran following a series of cyberattacks believed to be retaliation for hosting Iranian dissidents.
Responsibility for the March 9 cyberattack was claimed by a hacker group known as Homeland Justice, which posted on Telegram that it would not allow “supporters of the MEK terrorists to sleep peacefully even for a moment.” Cybersecurity analyses, including one by Microsoft, have linked the group to actors connected to the Iranian government.
