A wider investigation into alleged fraud involving a $4 billion luxury resort linked to Jared Kushner has led Albanian authorities to freeze the investor's assets, adding to existing pressure from public protests and international criticism.
According to the international portal OCCRP (Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project), on June 2, Albanian anti-corruption prosecutors froze the bank accounts of a land-owning company linked to a controversial luxury resort project supported by US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
The escalation of the crisis over coastal development plans has sparked mass protests, a sharp diplomatic clash with neighboring Greece, and stern warnings from the European Union, the portal adds.
The preventive seizure, ordered by the Special Prosecutor's Office for the Fight against Corruption and Organized Crime, concerns the company Albania Land Development, as part of a broader investigation into allegedly falsified ownership documents.
A company owned by prominent Qatari entrepreneurs Moutaz and Ramez Al-Hayat recently purchased coastal plots in Zvernec. The protected coastal area along the Adriatic Sea, near the southern city of Vlora, is where Jared Kushner's investment firm, Affinity Partners, plans to build an elite mega-resort, the report said.
The legal intervention followed several days of intense protests, it added, recalling that thousands of demonstrators protested in Tirana under the slogan "Albania is not for sale" and that environmental organizations and local residents are protesting the project's encroachment on a protected area that is an important Mediterranean wetland habitat for flamingos and sea turtles.
The unrest escalated after a clash between local residents and private security guards hired to guard the construction site. Footage from the scene that went viral on social media shows a guard hitting and dragging a protester away from the fenced-in beach.
In response to the violence, police launched an internal investigation into the command structure of the Vlora police department, and authorities arrested a 32-year-old employee of a private security firm.
Prime Minister Edi Rama condemned the security measures as abhorrent, but vigorously defended the project as the country's ticket to the "Champions League of global tourism." He said five leading international architectural firms were redesigning the master plan to protect the environment, stressing that the bay itself would not be touched.
Rama also defended the project's foreign investors, while simultaneously supporting an investigation into local land sellers.
"Investors have the right to their actions. Blocking a transaction is arbitrary and negative. But blocking the transfer of money to an owner who is under suspicion is acceptable. If the investigation shows that there are individuals who falsely claimed to be the owners, the money should go to those who are the legitimate owners," Rama said.
OCCRP reports that the riots and violence have caused serious tensions with Athens, turning a local land dispute into an international diplomatic incident.
The Greek Foreign Ministry expressed "deep concern" over the events in Zvernec, confirming that a Greek citizen was among the injured residents who were protesting for their property rights.
The Greek Embassy in Tirana provided medical assistance to the victim and officially sent a protest note to the Albanian government demanding accountability.
Athens also warned Tirana that respecting the property rights of minorities and protecting ecological areas are prerequisites for progress in the European integration process, which Albania aspires to.
Rama rejected Athens' diplomatic intervention, arguing that historical property disputes must be resolved exclusively before Albanian courts, and not through external political pressure.
However, the European Commission has supported Greece's concerns about the rule of law and environmental protection, further sharpening its focus on Albania's European aspirations. A Commission spokesman warned that Brussels is closely monitoring the protected landscape.
"As noted in our 2025 annual report, the repeated extension of the strategic investment law continues to raise concerns about possible environmental impacts, especially in protected areas," the spokesperson said, adding that Albania must demonstrate full compliance with European nature protection standards in order to advance in the membership process.
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