What is your opinion on Al-Albani's view that seeking refuge (isti'adha) is obligatory and should be done in every rak'ah due to the generality of Allah's saying: "So when you recite the Qur'an, [first] seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the expelled [from His mercy]"?

The worshipper's seeking refuge [with Allah] before recitation is recommended in every rak'ah according to the Shafi'is and Hanbalis. The Malikis disliked it in obligatory prayers but recommended it in supererogatory prayers. The Hanafis recommended it only in the first rak'ah, and this is the relied-upon opinion among the Hanbalis. The recommendation of seeking refuge is the saying of the majority of scholars among the Companions, their successors, and those who came after them. Their evidence is the noble verse: "So when you recite the Qur'an, seek refuge with Allah from Shaytan, the expelled." As for the ma'mum (follower), the Shafi'i madhhab (definition) recommends it for him, while Ath-Thawri and Abu Hanifah said the ma'mum does not seek refuge. The ruling of seeking refuge is recommended, not obligatory, according to the majority. Its obligation was narrated from 'Ata', Ath-Thawri, and Dawud Az-Zahiri.