Police Defend Order in Tirana Amid Violent Leftist Protests Against Coastal Development Linked to Jared Kushner
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Tirana police were forced to use tear gas and pepper spray after radical demonstrators, demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama’s resignation, attacked officers during a protest targeting a luxury resort project associated with American businessman Jared Kushner.
Police in Albania’s capital acted decisively on Thursday to restore order after several hundred unruly protesters gathered outside parliament. The authorities deployed tear gas, pepper spray, and a water cannon when demonstrators—many aligned with leftist and anti-government groups—threw rocks, eggs, and plastic bottles, damaging a police vehicle and injuring twelve officers. Eighteen agitators were detained for their role in the violence.
The protest is part of a series of disruptive daily actions, labeled the “flamingo revolution,” which began under the pretext of environmental concerns over a luxury coastal development at Narta Lagoon connected to U.S. businessman Jared Kushner. However, the rallies have quickly morphed into a broader campaign to undermine Prime Minister Edi Rama and destabilize the government.
Protesters, waving cardboard flamingo cut-outs and shouting anti-government slogans, demanded Rama’s resignation. Agitator Agustela Thoma claimed the protesters “want their voice to be heard inside the parliament” and declared “enough is enough.”
Interior Minister Besfort Lamallari rightly condemned the “acts of vandalism and criminal violence,” emphasizing that attacks on police are direct attacks on the state and the rule of law.
