Known as a country of religious tolerance which is a value deeply rooted in the national civic tradition and with fewer than two out of ten Albanians actively practicing religious beliefs and rituals, the 1possibility of radicalising and recruiting Albanian religious believers to wage a war seemed quite remote, if not impossible five years ago. Media reports of Albanian citizens (approximately 144 citizens between 2012 and 2015) travelling to Syria and Iraq to join the armed conflicts there, had stunned the Albanian public and institutions in the late 2013, in the wake of global concerns over the changing nature of terrorist threats and violent extremism. As a global response to violent extremism and recruitment of foreign fighters was being shaped, 2Albania adopted amendments to its Penal Code which made it illegal to (1) participate in; (2) organise the participation of; or (3) call for participation in military action in a foreign country. The new 3legislation and the law enforcement agencies’ response changed dramatically the Albanian foreign fighters’ figures as the Government declared that the number of Albanian citizens joining ISIS in 2015 was close to zero and, as of 2016 none had done so. Aiming to de-securitise the response to violent extremism by focusing on the root causes and drivers, the Government of Albania adopted the National CVE Strategy in November 2015. Simultaneously, 2015 4marked the intensification of countering and prevention actions carried out by civil society, religious communities and other non-state players with the support of international donors.