Albanian Protests Mount Against Kushner-Linked Luxury Resort

Under the slogan ‘Albania is not for sale’, Albanian citizens protest the private resort project in Tirana on June 1, 2026. Photo: BIRN/Nensi Bogdani

Opposition to a planned private development project in the protected Narta Lagoon area in southern Albania, linked to Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, reached a new high on Monday and Tuesday, as thousands of protesters gathered outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Tirana.

Under the slogan “Albania Is Not for Sale”, protesters called for the cancellation of the project, the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama, and an end to what they called the transfer of public and private assets to benefit oligarchs with ties to the government.

The proposed development has faced sustained opposition from environmental groups, activists and some locals who say it threatens the fragile ecosystem of the Narta Lagoon, one of Albania’s most important protected coastal areas.

Anger intensified after private security guards hired by the company behind the project last week assaulted demonstrators. The confrontation occurred in an area where the company had fenced off land and beach access with barbed wire in preparation for the development. Police officers present at the scene were accused of standing by and failing to intervene.

Kushner revealed plans for his private equity firm Affinity Partners to turn the site into a luxury resort in 2024 and early this year he visited the area with his wife, Ivanka.

Rama’s outspoken defence of the project has meanwhile amplified various conspiracy theories about the involvement of domestic and foreign actors. Rama has insisted that no formal project yet exists, claiming the investor company is still conducting an environmental assessment.

On Monday, hailing the proposed Zvernec development as part of his vision of “elite tourism”, he also launched a personal attack on the writer and political analyst Fatos Lubonja.

At Saturday’s protest, Lubonja accused Rama of protecting the interests of organised crime and oligarchic networks at the expense of the public interest. Asserting the Prime Minister was directly involved in the project, Lubonja described Rama’s defence of it as “ridiculous”.

“It is not the first time Rama has chosen to confront protesters personally,” Lubonja said. “He does so both because he is the driving force behind these projects and because he believes no one around him possesses his ability to turn black into white.”

Ermal Hasimja, a political science lecturer, argued that the PM’s real problem was his failure to show real transparency. “While Kushner’s involvement is legitimate and publicly known, the problem lies in the lack of transparency regarding the other investors,” Hasimja told BIRN.

While the government had failed to provide transparency, a years-long process of legal amendments has gradually weakened environmental safeguards, paving the way for this and similar projects, he added.

Arlind Qori, leader of the Together Movement (Levizja Bashke), claimed Rama’s alleged involvement in the project illustrates his capture by domestic and foreign oligarchic interests. “The Zvernec project appears to involve major economic interests that have little to do with the well-being of the Albanian people and everything to do with the further enrichment of oligarchs, corrupt officials and the preservation of Rama’s grip on power,” Qori said.

He accused the government of “destroying protected areas and public assets, and facilitating the dispossession of small, legitimate landowners in Zvernec and across Albania”.