Overview
- Albania loosened rules on protected areas in February 2024 and the government granted 'strategic investor' status in December 2024, moves that cleared the way for high‑end developments on Sazan Island and the Zvërnec coast.
- Investigators opened a formal probe after a declared land sale value jumped sharply in April 2026, with the Special Anti‑Corruption Prosecution Office examining possible money‑laundering and dubious transfers tied to companies linked to the project.
- The protests known as the 'Flamingo Revolution' have continued for more than two weeks and expanded into mass demonstrations after footage of private security violently removing a local activist went viral.
- The European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for an immediate moratorium on new permits in protected areas and the European Commission has demanded a full environmental impact assessment and the reversal of legal changes that eased approvals.
- The standoff is already hitting people’s lives: the prime minister reports cancelled tourist bookings, local roads and dunes show signs of preparatory works, the diaspora has staged solidarity rallies abroad, and the combined legal and EU pressure could slow or alter the planned resorts and affect Albania’s EU accession path.