- The announcement of the ban came after a dispute that began on social media led to the murder of a teenager.
TIRANA: Albanian authorities have ordered all internet providers to block access to TikTok by Thursday.
According to a statement from the Office of Electronic and Postal Communications, providers are required to block the relevant IP addresses and DNS servers associated with the application.
Prime Minister Edi Rama first announced the ban in December after a dispute that began on social media left a 14-year-old student dead and another injured in a brawl outside a school in the capital Tirana.
The murder has sparked a debate about the impact of social media on young people.
However, the opposition has called for protests, saying the ban would impact their campaign ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections in May.
TikTok is hugely popular among young people due to its endless amount of short videos and over a billion active users worldwide.
However, the Chinese platform regularly becomes the subject of controversy.
The app has faced spying charges in the US and is under investigation by the European Union over allegations it was used to influence the outcome of Romania's presidential election in favour of a far-right candidate.
Meanwhile, in Albania, authorities have criticized TikTok for its alleged role in promoting violence, including school fights.
Elsewhere around the world, TikTok has regularly been accused of restricting users' content through an opaque algorithm and of facilitating the spread of misinformation and illegal, violent or offensive content, particularly among young people.
Several countries have banned it for varying periods of time, including Pakistan, Nepal and France's New Caledonia.
AFP, like more than a dozen other fact-checking organizations, receives money from TikTok in several countries to fact-check videos that potentially contain false information.
