In Albania, anger grows against the government for supporting a Kushner-linked luxury resort

A significant story is unfolding on the international scene. World In Albania, anger grows against the government for supporting a Kushner-linked luxury resort June 16, 20261:10 PM ET Rob Schmitz A drone view shows protesters gathered outside the prime minister's office in Tirana, Albania, on June 10, during the 10th consecutive day of demonstrations against a proposed luxury tourism development project linked to Jared Kushner. Organizers say thousands of people attended the rally. Vlasov Sulaj/NurPhoto via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Vlasov Sulaj/NurPhoto via Getty Images TIRANA, Albania — The way Ivanka Trump tells it, she and her husband Jared Kushner were vacationing on a friend's boat years ago on the Adriatic Sea off the coast of Albania when they stopped for a swim.

"Effectively, that's how we found it," she told podcaster David Senra earlier this month about Sazan, an uninhabited island off Albania's Adriatic coast. "We swam to the island. We went on a hike barefoot all the way up to the top, and we were just captivated and it stayed with us ever since.

The Details

" Over the ensuing years, the couple's captivating trip evolved into plans to build a luxury resort along a stretch of Albanian coastline directly across from the island. Albania's government has given the project preliminary approval, prompting daily protests outside Prime Minister Edi Rama's office in the capital Tirana. Sponsor Message Chanting "Edi Rama out!

" thousands of people flooded the capital's streets on a recent day, calling on the prime minister to resign. "It started with a national area being closed off to the public and having big lorries and trucks starting to build in a protected area," said protester Eden Hosha about Zvérnec, the coastal area across from the island. Hundreds of species of birds nest here in the winter.

But as these protests have grown bigger in recent days, they've become a public show of no-confidence in the Albanian government itself. "We're tired of these guys stealing from us," said Hosha. "Stealing our resources.

What Experts Say

Selling things that are not theirs to sell. " For decades, Sazan Island was used by Albania's then-ally the Soviet Union as a submarine base and testing grounds for biological and chemical weapons. Soviet-era masks still litter Sazan today.

Hundreds of protesters gather along a beach in Zvérnec, where Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump plan to build a luxury resort. Rob Schmitz/NPR hide caption toggle caption Rob Schmitz/NPR The island sits across the sea from Zvérnec, a strip of beach and cliffs along Albania's Adriatic coastline that protects an inland lagoon. In the David Senra podcast that aired earlier this month, Ivanka Trump described both plots of land as belonging to her and Kushner.

"Not only the island, but we have five miles of beachfront directly across from the island," she told Senra. "This beautiful peninsula with a lagoon on one side, the ocean on the other, and beautiful white sand beaches.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.