They wish you a fiery Christmas.
Protesters outraged by a police killing in Albania set fire to a Christmas tree and toppled decorative reindeer in a wild riot Wednesday night, according to reports.
Hundreds of furious demonstrators took to the streets of Tirana — torching a towering tannenbaum outside Prime Minister Edi Rama’s office — after a man was shot dead by police while breaking coronavirus lockdown rules, according to Politico.
During the chaos, rioters threw stones and flares at government buildings and knocked over festive Christmas decorations in the city’s main square, the outlet reported.
One hooded protester is shown dragging a reindeer statue across a city street adorned with holiday lights in footage posted by BBC News.
At least 16 police officers were injured — one in serious condition — as law enforcement fired back with tear gas.
The 25-year-old man was fatally shot Tuesday after police confronted him about breaking the country’s 10 p.m. curfew and he refused to stop.
Cops have said he was holding an object officers thought was a weapon — and admitted later the shooting was “unacceptable.”
“The police officer did not act according to the law while using his firearm,” the local police department said in a statement, adding its no excuse for violent, destructive protests.
“The unacceptable episode of the killing of a citizen … cannot be exploited as a pretext to exercise blind violence, to seriously injure police offices and damage public and private property.”
Four protesters were arrested during the riots. It wasn’t immediately clear if protesters had a specific reason for the war on Christmas decorations.