Zvernec, Albania: The Resort Controversy Explained

Zvernec — a quiet island and coastal area on the Narta Lagoon near Vlora — has become the centre of a major political controversy in Albania. A luxury resort project linked to Jared Kushner has triggered protests, clashes with private security guards and police, concern from Greece, and an anti-corruption investigation into how some of the land was acquired. If you have been searching “what is happening in Zvernec” or “Albania resort protest,” here is what is known, based on the reporting listed at the end of this article.

Latest Developments (as of 14 October 2026)

Since this explainer was first published in early June, the dispute has widened and the investigations have moved on. The main developments, as reported by the sources listed at the end of this article:

• A nationwide protest movement. Daily demonstrations began in Tirana on 31 May and spread to other cities. Dubbed the “Flamingo Revolution”, the movement broadened from the resort itself to demands including Prime Minister Edi Rama’s resignation and the repeal of amendments to the law on protected areas. Some protests have turned confrontational: on 8 September, as parliament returned from its summer recess and the protests passed their 100th day, police clashed with demonstrators outside parliament in Tirana. On 13 October, a student protest that Balkan Insight described as part of the movement turned violent outside the Ministry of Education in Tirana (see our report on the student protest).
• Land-title investigation. Reuters reported in July, citing case files, that SPAK, Albania’s anti-corruption prosecution service, suspects Artur Shehu, the Miami-based businessman who sold coastal land to a company connected with the resort, and his associates of laundering cocaine-trafficking proceeds into property and of using falsified land titles to hide where the money came from. According to Reuters, around €110 million from the land sale has been frozen in a notary’s account. Shehu denies the allegations: his lawyer told Reuters they were untrue and that his client had lawfully sold land his family had held since Ottoman times. Reuters also reported that it found no evidence that Kushner or the resort’s other backers knew of any suspicions about Shehu when the land changed hands, and no wrongdoing has been alleged against them.
• Kushner’s role clarified. In June, Affinity Partners said the fund is not involved in developing the project and that any investors take part in a personal capacity. In a statement in early October responding to an investigation by The New Yorker, Kushner described himself as a minority partner focused on the project’s architectural vision and design, said the land near Zvernec had been bought for €230 million, and said the project would have to undergo all applicable Albanian regulatory and environmental reviews.
• The government is standing by the project. Rama has said there is no chance the investment will stop while he is in office, and argues that large international projects create jobs and help modernise the country.
• Three more permits in the same protected area. On 29 September, Balkan Insight (BIRN) reported that Albania’s National Council of Territory and Water had approved three development permits in May and June 2025, for a resort village of villas and seafront buildings, a hotel and a tourist complex, together covering more than 190,000 square metres in the Pishë Poro–Narta protected area. Two of the sites are in Zvernec. BIRN said final decisions on the permits had not yet been formally issued because the developers had not completed the required documentation. Balkan Insight also reported that all three plots have previous connections to Artur Shehu; Shehu did not respond to BIRN and has previously denied all allegations made against him. See our news brief on the three permits.

On the evidence of Kushner’s October statement, the Zvernec resort has not yet completed Albania’s approval and environmental review procedures.

Where Is Zvernec?

Zvërnec is a village on the Narta Lagoon, just north-west of Vlora on Albania’s southern Adriatic coast. A small island in the lagoon is home to the Monastery of Saint Mary (Manastiri i Shën Marisë), a medieval Byzantine-era monastery protected as a cultural monument. Visitors reach the island via a wooden footbridge across the shallow lagoon — it has long been a quiet stop for travellers exploring the Vlora coastline.

The broader Zvernec-Narta area lies within the Pishë Poro–Narta protected area, near the delta of the Vjosa River; environmental organisations consider it one of the last largely untouched stretches of coast in the Mediterranean. The lagoon is known for its flamingos and other waterbirds, and the coast nearby has sea-turtle nesting sites.

The Resort Project: What Is Being Built?

The project at the centre of the controversy is a luxury resort planned for the Zvernec-Narta coastline, inside the Pishë Poro–Narta protected area. It is separate from, but often discussed alongside, a Kushner-linked plan to turn Sazan island, a former military base offshore, into a luxury resort valued at about €1.4 billion.

The Zvernec developer is Zvërnec South Adriatic Development, an Albanian company set up in August 2024. According to Exit News, its ownership chain runs through Dutch shell companies to a Qatar-registered holding company controlled by businessmen Ramez and Moutaz Al-Khayyat; the holding company’s chief executive is Asher Abehsera, a former business partner of Jared Kushner. Kushner’s own role has been disputed: Affinity Partners, his investment fund, says it is not involved in the development, while Kushner himself said in October 2026 that he is a minority partner.

Prime Minister Edi Rama and Kushner have both put the potential investment at around €4 billion.

Development permits were approved by Albania’s National Territorial Council, chaired by Prime Minister Edi Rama; BIRN reports that they were granted less than eight months after the company was founded. Critics, including BIRN’s Albanian service Reporter.al, say the permits were not officially published — a detail that has fuelled criticism about transparency. Rama has said the permits issued so far cover only temporary access roads and research activities.

The Protests: What Happened on 30 May 2026?

A week after residents and activists protested against the fencing-off of the beach on 23 May, demonstrators returned on Saturday 30 May 2026 to the project site at Portonovo, near Zvernec, to try to block work there. The protest drew local residents and environmental activists. Zvernec and nearby Narta are home to members of Albania’s Greek minority, and the property rights of minority members later became part of Greece’s response.

The situation escalated when confrontations broke out between protesters and private security guards at the site. Videos showed physical altercations and the use of pepper spray, and several protesters were injured. According to the Greek Foreign Ministry, a Greek citizen was among the injured.

Police were present, and their handling of the events has itself become controversial. Albanian authorities subsequently suspended several police officers and revoked the licences of two private security companies.

Timeline of Events

Why Are People Opposed?

Opposition to the project centres on three main issues:

1. Environmental Concerns

The Zvernec-Narta area lies inside a protected area near the Vjosa delta, and its lagoon, dunes and wetlands support flamingos and other waterbirds. Environmental organisations argue that a resort of this scale would cause irreversible damage to the ecosystem — through construction, increased traffic, water demand, and light and noise pollution. AFP reported in September that preliminary work had already damaged the coast, destroying bird and loggerhead turtle nesting sites.

Albania received international praise when it designated the Vjosa as Europe’s first Wild River National Park in March 2023. Critics say that allowing large-scale coastal development near the river’s delta contradicts that conservation achievement.

The Narta Lagoon is a critical habitat for flamingos and other migratory birds.

2. Property Rights & Land Ownership

Ownership of the coastal land has been contested for decades. BIRN found multiple competing claims over the plots concerned — including village residents and the Shehu family — with courts issuing conflicting rulings over the years. Local families, including members of the Greek minority, argue that the project could create faits accomplis on land they consider theirs. Prime Minister Rama has said the investment is on private property. Since June, prosecutors have been investigating whether some of the land sold for the project was acquired using forged documents, Reuters has reported (see Latest Developments).

Land ownership in Albania is notoriously complex. Decades of communist-era collectivisation, followed by chaotic post-communist privatisation, left many properties with overlapping or unclear title claims. This history makes large-scale land acquisition contentious in any part of the country.

3. Transparency & Process

Reports that the development permits were not officially published have raised red flags for critics, opposition politicians and civil society groups, as has the 2024 change to the protected areas law that opened such areas to five-star hotels. SPAK — Albania’s Special Prosecution Office Against Corruption and Organised Crime — opened an investigation in early June into the funds used to acquire land titles in the area and their sale to investors.

The Government’s Position

Prime Minister Edi Rama has defended the project, stating that the investment is on private property and that it represents a major economic opportunity. Reacting to the 30 May clashes, he praised the State Police response to what he called “that gang of brainless thugs” — referring to the private security guards involved, not the protesters. He has said there is no chance the investment will stop while he is in office, and has dismissed the wider protests as orchestrated by political rivals.

The government’s broader argument is that large international tourism projects create employment and help modernise a country that spent decades in communist isolation.

The International Response

The injury of a Greek citizen during the clashes drew Greece into the situation. On 31 May the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed strong concern and said its embassy in Tirana was making representations to the Albanian side, requesting a full investigation and the attribution of responsibility. It also stressed the protection of the rights and property of members of the Greek national minority, linking this to Albania’s EU accession process.

The controversy has also attracted attention from international media and environmental organisations, given the project’s connection to Jared Kushner and the sensitive ecological status of the area.

What Both Sides Are Saying

What Does This Mean for Travellers?

For broader travel planning, see our 7-day Albania itinerary and travel tips.

Vlora’s seafront promenade.

What Happens Next?

As of 14 October 2026, these are the issues to watch:

• SPAK investigation — prosecutors are investigating suspected forged deeds and money laundering linked to the land sold for the resort, according to Reuters. The outcome could affect who legally owns parts of the site.
• Approvals and environmental review — according to Kushner, the project still has to go through Albania’s regulatory and environmental reviews. Whether an environmental impact assessment is carried out and made public will be closely watched.
• Other projects in the protected area — BIRN’s reporting on three further development permits in Pishë Poro–Narta, which have not yet been formally issued, has widened the debate beyond a single resort (see our news brief).
• The protest movement — protesters continue to demand the Prime Minister’s resignation and the repeal of amendments to the protected areas law; the government says the project will go ahead.

We will update this article as the situation develops.