Vienna State Opera shooting

FEB 20 1931

On 20 February 1931 Zog was attacked outside the Vienna State Opera by Aziz Çami and Ndok Gjeloshi, Albanian nationalist opponents. His minister Eqrem Libohova was wounded and his guard Llesh Topallaj was shot three times. Zog survived unhurt; it is the best-documented of the attempts on his life. The famous claim that Zog drew his own pistol and returned fire, the origin of his reputation as the only head of state to shoot back at his own assassins, is repeated everywhere but is not supported by the encyclopaedic account, which records his bodyguard and minister being hit and Zog escaping. Treat the gunfight as legend unless a contemporary press report can be produced.