Story perspectives

Kushner Secures $1.6 B Albanian Island Deal, Flamingo Protests Erupt

7/9/2026

Summary

Kushner Controls

Senator Jon Ossoff said a $1.6 billion deal gave Jared Kushner control of Sazan Island and Vjosa-Narta lagoon.
Thousands have protested in Tirana for a month, forming Flamingo Revolution, demos since communism fell.
Ivanka Trump said she “found” Sazan Island in 2024 while aboard Nat Rothschild’s boat.
The Aman Resorts project would add 800 rooms, a course, casino and waterpark with rates above $1,000, exceeding Albania’s median income of about $12,000.

Summary

Rama Slams Critics

Police deployed pepper spray and water cannons against demonstrators in early July.
Some protesters responded by hurling rocks.
Activists are demanding repeal of the 2024 law that allows five-star resorts in protected areas.
Demonstrators also call for removal of the “strategic investor” designation that fast-tracked Kushner’s project.
Prime Minister Edi Rama answered critics with profanity, dismissed bird-conservation concerns as “ideological bullshit,” and abruptly ended a televised interview.

Summary

Prosecutor Probes

Albania’s anti-corruption prosecutor froze the accounts of Syrian billionaire brothers Moutaz Al-Khayyat and Ramez Al-Khayyat, who financed the Vjosa-delta project and lobbied the U.S. President Donald Trump administration to lift sanctions on Syria.
The same prosecutor opened an inquiry into the Albanian-American seller who transferred land to Jared Kushner, probing alleged drug-trafficking links.
The European Union warned that the protected-area development could jeopardize Albania’s EU accession goal for 2030.

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Kushner Controls

Senator Jon Ossoff said a $1.6 billion deal gave Jared Kushner control of Sazan Island and Vjosa-Narta lagoon.
Thousands have protested in Tirana for a month, forming Flamingo Revolution, demos since communism fell.
Ivanka Trump said she “found” Sazan Island in 2024 while aboard Nat Rothschild’s boat.
The Aman Resorts project would add 800 rooms, a course, casino and waterpark with rates above $1,000, exceeding Albania’s median income of about $12,000.

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