This special episode of The Newsagents travels to Tirana to explain why Albania, rather than any major American or European city, has become the site of the most sustained protests against the Trump family since Donald Trump's return to office. The trigger is a luxury resort project on Sazan island and the Karaburun-Sazan coastline, planned by a consortium including Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, on land the hosts describe as an untouched environmental site with flamingos and rare species. What began as local opposition to construction work grew into the nationwide "Flamingo Revolution", drawing in disputes over land ownership dating back to the communist era, allegations linking a Miami-based businessman in the deal to drug trafficking, and claims by Prime Minister Edi Rama that foreign actors, including Iran, are manipulating the protesters.
Reporters and guests, including The Atlantic's Isaac Stanley-Becker and former foreign minister Ditmir Bushati, situate the protests within Albania's post-communist history of land seizure, elite control of public space, and hopes for EU accession, framing the demonstrations as a test of whether the country can build durable institutions rather than personality-driven politics. The discussion touches on the scale of the protests relative to Albania's population, the country's diaspora, conspiracy theories involving Israel and Epstein-style allegations, and the broader tension between "development" driven by autocratic-style deals and "modernisation" through institutions, courts and EU-style governance.
Key points from the discussion
The points they raised, and the official data behind them.
The hosts noted the protests in Tirana had continued for seventy-six consecutive nights by the time of recording.
~02:01Context
The protests, dubbed the Flamingo Revolution, began after construction started on a luxury resort project on the Karaburun-Sazan coastline involving a consortium linked to Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. They are described as the most sustained protest movement against the Trump family anywhere in the world since his return to office in 2025.
The hosts cited a claim that 250,000 Albanians took part in one of the protests.
~13:01Context
Albania has a population of roughly 2.8 million people, so a turnout of this scale was presented as representing a very large share of the country. The hosts compared it to an equivalent-sized protest in the UK to illustrate the scale.
The hosts said this protest turnout amounted to about 10% of Albania's entire population.
~13:05