TIRANA, Albania (CNN) -- Albania's internal strife intensified Thursday as the government moved closer to arresting former President Sali Berisha on charges of fomenting anti-government riots that have killed seven people and injured more than 70.

A parliamentary commission recommended that Berisha, a member of Parliament, be stripped of his immunity against arrest. The full Parliament is expected to take up the matter Friday.

A defiant Berisha said he welcomed the recommendation.

"Twice I have felt proud of myself -- in 1991 when I saw with my eyes how my people stood up (to communism) and now," said the former president, who called on his supporters to turn out in force Friday for a protest rally that some observers fear could trigger more violence.

Earlier Thursday, Berisha led 3,000 supporters of his Democratic Party through the streets of Tirana in a peaceful march. He and his party have denounced the government of Socialist Prime Minister Fatos Nano as a communist-style dictatorship.

Nano took over as head of a five-party coalition after voters ousted Berisha in June 1997.

The current crisis was triggered Saturday when Azem Hajdari, a popular Democratic Party politician and close ally of Berisha, was killed.

Berisha blamed Nano's government for the slaying, and on Sunday and Monday, anti-government rioters damaged government offices and briefly took over state television. Government officials accused Berisha of trying to overthrow the government with what amounted to a coup.

While Tirana was calm Thursday, there were reports of violence in the northern town of Lezhe, where about 80 demonstrators attacked a police station late Wednesday night. Three people were reportedly killed.

Daan Everts, an official with the Albanian field office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, made an appeal for Albanians to remain calm and urged both Democrats and Socialists to eschew violence.

"What should be done now is, first of all, to keep the heads cool," he said.

Everts said he thought it was unlikely that Nano would give in to calls by Berisha that his government resign. He said that would only create more chaos.

"People want to be able to walk in the streets, obviously, and institutions should be protected and preserved," he said. "So resignation now would be rather adding to the chaos than resolving it. I think it is very unlikely at this moment."

European countries concerned about the deepening unrest are considering sending a high-level ministerial delegation to Albania to defuse the situation, perhaps as early as this weekend. Ministers from Austria, Greece, Poland and Italy could take part.

Greece's Alternate Foreign Minister George Papandreou said the delegation would try to meet with both Nano and Berisha.

Reuters contributed to this report.