Blood Feuds in Albania: The Kanun Code in Modern Society

Last updated: 5 October 2026

Photo: Albania - William John Gauthier

Albania blood feuds Kanun represent one of Europe's most unusual human rights problems. In the 21st century, thousands of Albanian families live trapped in their homes because of a centuries-old code of honour and revenge. The Kanun, also called the Code of Leke Dukagjini, is a set of customary laws from the 15th century. It includes rules about blood vengeance, known as gjakmarrja in Albanian. This article explains how blood feuds work, how many people are affected, and what this means for asylum claims. For expert witnesses working on Albanian cases, understanding the Kanun is essential.

Despite being an EU candidate country, Albania has failed to resolve the problem of blood feuds. The government abolished the National Coordinator for Blood Feuds in 2013 and has not replaced it with any effective alternative. Families affected by feuds receive almost no state protection. This report draws on evidence from UNHCR, the Council of Europe, NGOs, and UK case law.

What Is the Kanun? The Code of Leke Dukagjini

The Kanun is a collection of customary laws that governed Albanian society for centuries. It is named after Leke Dukagjini, a 15th-century Albanian prince. The Kanun was not written down until the early 20th century, when Shtjefen Gjecovi, a Franciscan priest, compiled and published it. The Kanun covers many areas of life, including marriage, property, hospitality, and honour. However, the most controversial part is its rules on blood vengeance.[1]

The word gjakmarrja comes from two Albanian words: gjak (blood) and marrja (taking). It means "blood-taking" or "blood revenge." Under the Kanun, blood has a price. If a man is killed, his family has the right and the duty to take the blood of a male member of the killer's family. This creates a cycle of revenge that can last for generations. The Kanun is not religious law. It is customary law that existed before and alongside both Christianity and Islam in Albania.

It is important to understand that the Kanun is not just about killing. It is a complete legal system that governed northern Albanian society for centuries. In areas where the state was weak or absent, the Kanun provided order. People followed it because there was no other law. Even today, in some parts of Albania, the Kanun carries more authority than the state legal system. This is especially true in rural areas of the north.[2]

How Albania Blood Feuds Kanun Rules Work in Practice

What Triggers a Blood Feud

A blood feud begins when one person kills another. However, it can also start from other serious offences. These include serious physical assaults, insults to honour, violations of hospitality rules, or disputes over land and property. In the traditional Kanun, a killing — even an accidental one — creates a "blood debt." The victim's family has the right to take the life of a male member of the killer's family.[3]

In modern Albania, blood feuds often start from ordinary disputes. A fight in a bar. A disagreement about land boundaries. A car accident that kills someone. These events can trigger a blood feud under the Kanun, especially in areas where the customary law is still strong. Once a feud begins, it is very difficult to stop.

The Rules of Blood Vengeance

Under the Kanun, the obligation to take blood falls on the male members of the victim's family. This means the father, brothers, sons, and cousins of the victim. The "blood" passes through the male line. Sons of a targeted man are also targets. In some interpretations, the obligation can pass to the next generation. A blood feud that started with one killing can result in multiple deaths over many years.

The Kanun also includes rules about when blood can be taken. Traditionally, a man in his own home was safe. The home was protected. However, once he stepped outside, he could be killed. There were also rules about besa, a temporary truce or guarantee of safe passage. A family that gave besa guaranteed that no harm would come to the other party during the truce period. However, besa was always temporary.[4]

Self-Isolation and Confinement

Because of the danger of being killed, men and boys from targeted families often stay inside their homes permanently. This is called self-isolation or self-confinement. In practice, it means that entire families become prisoners. Men cannot go to work. Boys cannot go to school. The family depends on women to go out and buy food, because women are traditionally not targeted under the Kanun. However, this has changed in some modern feuds, and women and children have also become targets.

Self-isolation can last for years or even decades. Children grow up without education. Families fall into extreme poverty. Mental health problems are common. Depression, anxiety, and hopelessness affect both adults and children. The Albanian People's Advocate (Ombudsman) has described self-isolation as a form of imprisonment without a court order.[5]

Self-isolated families live in conditions that amount to cruel and degrading treatment. Children are denied education. Adults are denied employment. The state does almost nothing to protect them. This is a human rights crisis inside Europe.

Operazione Colomba, Report on Blood Feuds and Self-Confined Families in Albania, 2020

Current Scale: How Many Families Are Affected

The exact number of families affected by blood feuds is difficult to determine. The Albanian government gives low numbers. It claims that only a few hundred families are in active feuds. NGOs and international organisations give much higher figures. Estimates range from 3,000 to over 10,000 families. The Albanian Foundation for Conflict Resolution estimated at least 3,000 families in self-isolation in 2018. Operazione Colomba, an Italian peace organisation, has documented hundreds of cases in the Shkoder region alone.[6]

Blood feuds are most common in northern Albania. The main areas include Shkoder, Tropoje, Kukes, Lezhe, and Mirdite. However, feuds have spread to other parts of the country. Cases have been reported in Tirana, Elbasan, and Durres. This is partly because families have moved from the north to escape feuds, but the feuds followed them. It is also because the Kanun's influence has spread beyond its traditional territory.

Government Response: Too Little, Too Late

The Albanian government has taken some steps to address blood feuds. However, these steps have been widely criticised as insufficient. The most significant was the creation of a National Coordinator for Blood Feuds. This position was established to coordinate government efforts to resolve feuds. However, the government abolished the position in 2013. Since then, there has been no dedicated state body to deal with blood feuds.[7]

Reconciliation Committees

Community-based reconciliation committees have tried to mediate between feuding families. These committees, often led by respected elders or religious leaders, negotiate truces and permanent reconciliations. They have had some success. However, reconciliation is voluntary. Both families must agree. If one family refuses, the feud continues. Reconciliation committees have no legal power. They cannot force anyone to participate. Additionally, even after a formal reconciliation, there is no guarantee that it will hold. Some families have broken reconciliation agreements and resumed the feud.

Criminal Law vs Customary Law

Albanian criminal law treats blood feud killings as murder. The Criminal Code, Article 78/a, provides a penalty of not less than 25 years or life imprisonment for murder committed as a result of blood feud. However, this law has not stopped blood feud killings. The police often cannot prevent the killings. Investigations are slow. Witnesses are afraid to testify. Perpetrators sometimes flee the country before trial. The threat of criminal punishment does not deter families who believe they have a duty under the Kanun to take blood.[8]

Police Protection: Inadequate and Ineffective

Police protection for blood feud families is widely regarded as inadequate. Victims report that when they go to the police, officers tell them to "stay at home" or to "resolve it among yourselves." Police sometimes refuse to take formal complaints. In rural areas, police may be related to one of the feuding families, which creates a conflict of interest. Even when police do intervene, they cannot provide long-term protection. There are no safe houses for blood feud families. Police patrols are temporary at best.[9]

Relocation within Albania does not work. Albania is a very small country. It covers only 28,748 square kilometres. The population is about 2.8 million. Family networks are strong. People know each other. A family that moves from Shkoder to Tirana can easily be found. Blood feuds follow families wherever they go within Albania. There are documented cases of people killed after relocating to a different city. The idea that internal relocation provides safety is not supported by the evidence.

UK and EU Case Law on Albania Blood Feuds Kanun

Courts in the UK and across Europe have considered Albanian blood feud cases in asylum proceedings. The key UK case is EH (blood feuds) Albania CG [2012] UKUT 348 (IAC). This was a Country Guidance case. The Upper Tribunal found that blood feuds in Albania are a real and serious phenomenon. It also found that the Albanian state does not provide adequate protection to blood feud families. However, the tribunal noted that each case must be assessed on its own facts.[10]

More recently, the UK Home Office published Country Policy and Information Notes on Albanian blood feuds. These notes acknowledge that blood feuds exist and that state protection is limited. However, they also suggest that some Albanian asylum claims based on blood feuds are not genuine. Decision-makers are advised to assess the credibility of each claim carefully. The question is always whether the individual faces a real risk and whether the state can protect them.

In the EU, courts in Germany, France, and Belgium have also considered Albanian blood feud cases. The European Court of Human Rights has not yet issued a leading judgment on Albanian blood feuds specifically. However, the court has ruled in other cases that states have a positive obligation to protect individuals from threats to life, even from non-state actors. This principle applies to Albania. For detailed guidance, see our asylum guide.[11]

Implications for Asylum Claims

Blood feud cases raise important questions for asylum law. The main legal basis for a claim is persecution by a non-state actor. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a person can be a refugee if their state is unable or unwilling to protect them from persecution. In Albanian blood feud cases, the persecutor is the opposing family. The question is whether the Albanian state can provide effective protection. As this report shows, the evidence strongly suggests that it cannot.[12]

The relevant Convention ground is usually "membership of a particular social group." Blood feud families are a group defined by a shared characteristic (family membership) that they cannot change. Some claims may also be based on "political opinion" if the feud has a political dimension. Additionally, Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights protects against return to a country where there is a real risk of torture, inhuman, or degrading treatment. Self-isolation can amount to inhuman treatment.

Conclusion

Albania blood feuds Kanun represent a continuing human rights crisis. The Kanun code, created in the 15th century, still controls the lives and deaths of thousands of Albanian families. Despite modern criminal laws, the state has failed to protect these families. The abolition of the National Coordinator in 2013 left a gap that has never been filled. Police do not provide effective protection. Internal relocation does not work. Reconciliation committees have limited success.

For asylum decision-makers and expert witnesses, the evidence is clear. Blood feud families in Albania face a real and immediate threat to life. The Albanian state is unable to protect them. Returning these families to Albania puts them at serious risk. Each case must be assessed individually, but the overall pattern shows a systemic failure of state protection. Albania's EU candidate status does not change this reality. The Kanun's grip on Albanian society remains strong, and until the state can truly protect its citizens, blood feud families will continue to need international protection.

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