Rama vows deal won’t stop amid Zvernec protests

Zvernec protests – Thousands of Albanians protested in Tirana over a €1.4 billion luxury resort tied to Jared Kushner-linked Affinity Partners, denouncing development near the Vjosa-Narta protected wetlands. Protesters demand a halt and heavy machinery out of the area after barb

Thousands of Albanians spilled into the streets of Tirana on Tuesday night, their chants and homemade signs pressed against the same worry: that a pristine stretch of coastline will be packaged and sold out.

Protesters gathered outside the office of Prime Minister Edi Rama holding inflatable flamingoes and placards reading “Nation is not for sale” and “I don’t want Albania like Dubai.” They were reacting to a development planned on an environmentally sensitive part of the Adriatic coast—a resort tied to a company linked with Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

At the center of the dispute is a €1.4 billion ($1.6 billion) luxury project led by Kushner’s investment firm Affinity Partners. The resort is planned on an island off Albania and along an undeveloped stretch of coastline near the Vjosa-Narta protected landscape. an area described as a wetland home to flamingos. seals. and sea turtle nesting sites.

Environmentalists argue the project would damage more than scenery. They say it would affect several hundred hectares of pristine beaches.

“Our focus remains on responsible stewardship, environmental enhancement, job creation, and creating long-term value for local communities. We respect the ongoing public and institutional processes. ” Asher Abehsera. chairman of Sazan Real Estate Development LLC—developing the plans in partnership with Kushner’s firm—said in a statement.

But protesters say the issue isn’t just environmental impact. They’re also alarmed by how quickly development arrived on paper and on the ground.

They began to mobilize after developers erected large barbed wire fences at the proposed site in Zvernec, near Vlora. In the days that followed, several hundred people gathered and clashed with private guards on Saturday, and a Reuters witness said some were injured.

Joni Vorpsi, an ecologist with the PPNEA-BirdLife Albania organization, said the project would amount to a new city with around 10,000 rooms and “it will completely destroy that wild region.”

“We want all construction to halt and heavy machines out of the protected area,” Vorpsi said.

Rama, for his part, defended the project on Tuesday. In a statement shared with Reuters. he said. “It is very important that we remain welcoming. that we remain fair. and that under no circumstances do we receive the stigma of being a country where investors are met with hostility.” He added. “There is absolutely no chance that the investment will stop as long as I am here.”.

The confrontation comes with U.S. political connections now part of a local fight. Kushner announced plans to build the resort in 2024 as part of a wider investment that also included a former army headquarters in the Serbian capital Belgrade. Last year, Kushner gave up the Serbia project after street protests against it.

Affinity Partners and Kushner did not respond to requests for comment.

Albania protests Tirana Vjosa-Narta Zvernec Jared Kushner Affinity Partners Edi Rama Sazan Real Estate Development LLC luxury resort environmentalists wetlands flamingos sea turtles protected landscape Serbia investment