STORY: Hundreds of protesters gathered in Zvernec on Saturday (June 6) to oppose a planned luxury resort backed by a company linked to Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Drone footage showed demonstrators forming a human sign reading "SAVE NARTA" while others marched carrying Albanian flags and banners.

The €1.4 billion ($1.6 billion) resort, being led by Kushner's investment firm Affinity Partners, is on an island off Albania and an undeveloped stretch of coastline near the Vjosa-Narta protected landscape, a wetland home to flamingos, seals and sea turtle nesting sites.

"If this project goes on, we will not see it as it is today," activist Besiana Guri said.

Protesters held banners reading "we are stronger than your bulldozers” and chanted "down with the dictatorship."

Environmentalists oppose the plan, which they say would impact several hundred hectares of pristine beaches.

Developers say they will progress responsibly. Affinity Partners and Kushner did not respond to requests for comment.

The animal conservation group PPNEA Bird Life Albania says the Vjosa Narta Protected Area is the only place in Albania where they nest, and have counted up to 7,000 flamingos passing through each year. The organisation said there is a risk flamingos will disappear if the project goes ahead.

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, he gave up the Serbia project following street protests against it.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: ZVERNEC, ALBANIA (JUNE 6, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. (MUTE) VARIOUS DRONE FOOTAGE OF PROTESTERS STANDING AND FORMING SIGN READING (English): “SAVE NARTA”

2. VARIOUS OF PROTESTERS MARCHING AND HOLDING ALBANIAN FLAGS

3. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ECOLOGIST, JONI VORPSI, SAYING:

“So for the moment they have removed the machinery, but of course their motivation is to go on. We will go on with protests. Today more people are seeing the site. We will keep on promoting it. This is a place that cannot be left aside, and everybody who sees it loves it.”

4. PROTESTERS MARCHING AND CHANTING (Albanian): “Edi Rama is over, Edi Rama is over”

5. PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNERS AND CHANTING: (Albanian): “Down with the dictatorship”

6. PROTESTER HOLDING RED AND BLACK FLARES

7. VARIOUS OF PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNER WITH FLAMINGO

8. PROTESTER HOLDING BANNER READING (English): “Ivanka Trump is not Christopher Columbus, she did not discover Sazan Island”

9. PROTESTERS CHEERING

10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTIVIST, BESIANA GURI, SAYING:

“If this project (resorts) goes on, we will not see it as it is today. For sure. We have a landscape protected area that will not be anymore the same landscape. That's also the main reason why a landscape protected area is to protect the landscape, which is unique. It's a beautiful natural landscape. And if we continue to work on this, we will not see it like this. It will be basically another city. So we're talking about urbanization. We're not talking about light tourism. We're not talking about nature tourism.”

11. WOMAN STANDING WITH TWO ALBANIAN FLAGS

12. PROTESTERS STANDING WITH ALBANIAN FLAGS

13. VARIOUS OF PROTESTER HOLDING BANNER READING (English): “WE ARE STRONGER THAN YOUR BULLDOZERS”

14. PROTESTERS HOLDING ALBANIAN FLAGS

15. (SOUNDBITE) (Albanian) TOUR OPERATOR, KLAJDI BELLO, SAYING:

“The land belongs to Albanians and will remain Albanian. It has been defended with blood and will be defended with blood; it has been inherited with blood, as in my own concrete case. As you can see, I was injured a week ago when we gathered here in Zvernec over the fence they had built earlier.”

16. PROTESTERS MARCHING AND HOLDING ALBANIAN FLAGS

17. (SOUNDBITE) (Albanian) TEACHER FROM VLORA, TEUTA ZILJA, SAYING:

“I am against the resort, I am against construction, and I am against the sale of Vlora. I live in Vlora; they are selling Vlora. And this resort they are telling us is ‘development’ is nothing but destruction. It is the sale of Albania, and the moment a fence is put up here, there will be no place left for Albanians.”

18. PROTESTER HOLDING BANNER READING (Albanian): “HOMELAND IS NOT FOR SALE, DO NOT TOUCH ZVERNEC”

19. PROTESTER CHANTING (Albanian): “ALBANIA BELONGS TO ALBANIANS” / GROUP CHANTING BACK (Albanian): “DEATH TO TRAITORS”

20. PROTESTERS WRAPPED IN ALBANIAN FLAGS

21. PROTESTER HOLDING BANNER READING (Albanian): “FLAMINGOS HAVE NO VOICE, WE ARE TALKING IN THEIR NAME”

22. PROTESTER HOLDING BANNER READING (Albanian): “HOMELAND IS NOT FOR SALE, DO NOT TOUCH ZVERNEC”

23. PROTESTERS HOLDING LARGE ALBANIAN FLAG

24. WAVES

25. VARIOUS OF PROTESTERS MARCHING AND HOLDING ALBANIAN FLAGS

26. (MUTE) VARIOUS DRONE FOOTAGE OF PROTESTERS MARCHING AND HOLDING ALBANIAN FLAGS