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The government’s decision comes after a 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death by a classmate following a fight on social media.
Albania has announced a year-long ban on TikTok after the murder of a teenager last month sparked concern about the influence of social media on children.
The ban on the popular video app will take effect early next year, Prime Minister Edi Rama said on Saturday after meeting with parent and teacher groups across the country.
“For a year, we will close it completely to everyone. There will be no TikTok in Albania,” Rama said.
There was no immediate comment from TikTok.
The Albanian government’s decision comes after a 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death in November by a classmate after arguments between the two boys began on social media. Albanian authorities held 1,300 meetings with teachers and parents after the stabbing.
Rama has blamed TikTok in particular for fueling violence among young people in and out of school.
Videos of minors supporting the murder had appeared on the application.
“The problem today is not our children. The problem today is us. The problem today is our society. The problem today is TikTok and everyone else who is holding our children hostage,” Rama said.
The prime minister said Albania would see how the company and other countries react at the end of a year before deciding whether to allow the company to resume operations.
The opposition rejected the government’s decision to ban the application.
“The dictatorial decision to shut down the social media platform TikTok… is a serious act against freedom of expression and democracy,” said Ina Zhupa, a lawmaker from the main opposition Democratic Party.
“It is a pure electoral act and an abuse of power to suppress freedoms.”
Several European countries, including France, Germany and Belgium, have imposed restrictions on children’s use of social media.
In one of the strictest regulations in the world, Australia passed a complete ban on social media for children under 16 in November.
TikTok has also faced accusations of espionage in the United States and is under investigation by the European Union over accusations that it was used to influence Romania’s presidential election in favor of a far-right candidate.
TikTok especially appeals to young people with its endless list of short videos and has more than one billion active users worldwide.
