Overview
- Weeks-long protests in Tirana have rallied thousands under the so-called “Revolution of the Flamingos” to oppose a planned €1.6bn resort on Sazan island and about 10,000 villas on the Zvërnec peninsula.
- In mid-July Dua Lipa described the demonstrations as “inspiring” on her Service95 podcast, a statement that pushed the issue into the international spotlight.
- Critics point to a December 2024 parliamentary amendment that eased rules for construction in sensitive zones and say heavy machinery entered Zvërnec before all environmental approvals were complete.
- Project backers led by Jared Kushner and associated with Ivanka Trump say the development will be managed responsibly and deliver jobs, and Prime Minister Edi Rama has called it a transformative investment.
- European legislators and Albanian conservation groups warn that building on Sazan and the Vjosa‑Narta area, home to threatened species such as the Mediterranean monk seal and loggerhead turtles, could breach EU environmental standards and complicate Albania’s accession talks.