Anger over planned luxury resorts in Albania, including one linked to Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner

Around 200 protesters have torn down fencing surrounding a controversial luxury development in Albania, as demonstrations continue over another planned resort linked ​to Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

For weeks, thousands of Albanians have ​been taking to the streets against a planned resort near the western city of Vlora on the Adriatic coast, in an environmentally sensitive area famous for its flamingos and ​a turtle nesting site.

Recent protests in the capital ​Tirana have seen blowing whistles and holding images of flamingos - one of the protected species that could see their habitats threatened by the proposed development.

The government says the venture would transform the former communist nation's tourism market, but it has drawn opposition from environmental campaigners and critics of longtime Socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, a separate protest against another project was held by villagers from Rrjoll, located in an area of sandy beaches and pine forests in ​northwestern Albania.

They waved Albanian national flags and shouted "Revolution" as they tore down ‌fences around the development, claiming ⁠it was being built on their ⁠confiscated land.

"The ‌protests will not stop until the residents of Rrjoll are compensated. We are 200 families whose land has been seized," landowner Zeke Nikolle Shullani, 56, told the Reuters news agency.

An Albanian company has been ​developing a five-star luxury tourist resort on the site ​and the project was granted special status by the government.

"What is happening in this country is madness," said Nikolin Markpalaj, 60, another local landowner.

Meanwhile, around 100 miles south of Rrjoll, residents from the village of Zvernec have made similar claims regarding a separate planned resort, linked to Jared Kushner.

They claim their land was wrongfully sold for development, although there is no evidence of wrongdoing by Mr Kushner, who is not directly involved in the villagers' dispute.

He has not responded to requests by Reuters for comment through his investment arm, Affinity Partners.

A spokesperson for a company called Sazan Real Estate Development LLC, which is developing the project, said Mr Kushner was investing in a personal ⁠capacity, instead of through Affinity.

Zvernec is on a narrow peninsula separated from the mainland by a lagoon where flamingos flock in summer. The ocean side is lined with empty beaches, olive groves and imposing cliffs.

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The scenery won over Mr Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump, when they saw ‌the land from a yacht a few years ago.

The European Union has expressed concern about the impact on local wildlife, but the prime minister insists the development is legal and that habitats would be protected.

The residents of Zvernec have been in a legal battle about the disputed land but the case remains unresolved.

The cases highlight problems of investing in Albania, where poor record-keeping, complex history and local corruption mean land disputes are common, lawyers and officials said.

(c) Sky News 2026: Anger over planned luxury resorts in Albania, including one linked to Donald Trump