Members of ecological organizations at one of the protests they held in Albania over the development of a luxury resort by Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.
Just as Greek-Albanian relations appeared to be emerging from the “freeze” into which they had been pushed by the Fredi Beleri case, the incidents in the village of Zvernec in the Vlore county have once again signaled a setback.
An environmental dispute was blown out of proportion, being framed as an attack on the Greek minority, and tensions flared between Athens and Tirana.
In reality, it was a gathering of Albanian environmental organizations, joined by residents of Zvernec – both Albanians and ethnic Greeks – who came together to protest alleged violations by prospective investors of environmental conditions set out in international agreements governing the tourist development of a coastal area of natural beauty.
The protest might not have attracted wider attention had it not been captured on television, showing the apparent brutality of private security guards against a demonstrator holding a Greek passport.
