One video showing a house on fire racked up more than a million views after being falsely shared as footage of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama's home, allegedly set alight by protesters during the current demonstrations.
However, text embedded in the video identified the property as belonging to Enver Hoxha, Albania's former communist leader, who ruled the country for four decades. The footage actually dates back to February, when protesters at an anti-government rally threw Molotov cocktails at Hoxha's former villa.
Another viral video purported to show thousands of people protesting against Jared Kushner's proposed development project, carrying banners declaring that Albania is "not for sale". In reality, the footage was unrelated to the demonstrations. It showed supporters of the Spanish football club Deportivo La Coruña celebrating their team's promotion to the top division in May.
The current protests are focused on a vast coastal development project linked to Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law. In 2024, Kushner announced plans for his private equity firm, Affinity Partners, to invest $1.6 billion in a luxury resort development in Albania, prompting questions about the overlap between his business interests and his political influence.
The proposal includes hotels on the uninhabited island of Sazan, a former military base dating from the communist era, as well as developments near a protected wetland reserve that is home to flamingos, monk seals and sea turtles.
Environmental activists warn that the project could cause irreversible damage to the ecosystem. Protesters have adopted the flamingo as a symbol of the movement, dubbing it the "Flamingo Revolution".
Speaking on a podcast this week, Ivanka Trump said she and her husband discovered the site by chance while swimming from a friend's boat and were "captivated" by what they found.
Prime Minister Edi Rama has defended the project, arguing that it will transform Albania's tourism industry as the country pursues membership of the European Union.
The Albanian government has also granted special investor status to the Kushner-linked company, a decision critics say amounts to selling off Albanian land. The prosecutor's office told AFP that an investigation had been opened into the decision, although no further details have been made public.
