On July 23—now the 54th day of the protest—demonstrations took place not only at the usual afternoon time but also in the morning, starting at 8:00 AM, in front of Parliament. Several hundred people gathered around the building while a plenary session was underway inside to decide on the issue of foreign ownership of agricultural land. Rather than congregating in a single spot, protesters spread out across the various entrances to Parliament, which was already ringed by metal barriers and a heavy police presence. The police officers—who were legally required to display identification badges on their uniforms—were not wearing them that day. It was a sign of what was to come.
Credit:©️Trivet Albanian Caption: police in riot gear but without identification codes.
By now, you know that the main demonstrations have been taking place in the late afternoon every day for over fifty days: a procession starts at Skanderbeg Square and heads to the Prime Minister’s office for a sit-in lasting several hours, followed by a march that continues along an indefinite route for an undetermined amount of time. These regular events, which have become a fixture of daily life in the capital, Tirana, are supplemented by special actions held in the mornings or on weekends.
Such actions are organized, for instance, when Parliament is in session—like the protests on July 2 and July 20—or outside other institutions; an example is the July 9 protest at the Ministry of Culture against the allocation of four million euros in public funds for a concert by Ye (better known to most as Kanye). Meanwhile, on weekends, the mobilization shifts to fenced-off areas that have been closed to the public, including Zvërnec (May 13, June 30, June 6), Rrjoll (June 13), and Kakome (June 21).
©️Trivet – Protest placard from the afternoon of July 23rd, reading: “Metamorphosis isn’t turning into an insect; it’s when the police serve crime instead of the citizens.”
©️Trivet On July 9, a protest took place outside the Ministry of Culture against the 4 million euros of public funds allocated for the Ye (Kanye West) concert. The sign reads: “Edi Rama: where antisemitism and Zionism meet.”
©️Trivet The mobilization on June 13 in Rrjoll—one of the areas fenced off and taken away from public and private access for a project by an oligarch, the Ulaj family of Gener2.
Returning to the bills under discussion in Parliament, one of the contested measures is a draft law published for consultation by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, titled “On the transfer of ownership of agricultural land to foreign natural and legal persons.” The text paves the way for the purchase of agricultural land by foreign citizens and companies, stipulating that the new provisions would take effect seven years after Albania’s potential accession to the European Union. Currently, foreign investors can lease agricultural land for up to 99 years but cannot purchase it. The new text, however, would allow the sale and purchase of both private and state-owned land, including land belonging to the pool of public lands classified as “available” or not yet allocated—all within an Albanian context where many families have yet to legalize their property holdings and numerous properties and land plots remain subject to ownership disputes.
The bill was debated just days after Deputy Minister of Agriculture Fatmir Guri and the Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Oren Lavi, signed a memorandum during a visit covering “agricultural technologies, sustainable production, food security, and joint research” between Albania and Israel. That was June 2nd—the third day of the “Flamingo Revolution.”
Around 10:00 a.m., tensions at the protest—which had begun peacefully—escalated sharply when police attempted to move barricades to prevent eggs and tomatoes from being thrown at lawmakers’ vehicles. After failing to push back the demonstrators, law enforcement used pepper spray and two water cannons to disperse the crowd. For several minutes, the entrance to Parliament turned into a scene of confrontation, with tomatoes and eggs flying through the air.
©️Trivet Tomatoes and eggs thrown at police officers
From the square—unusually uncongested despite the peak hour—chants rang out such as “Rama, resign,” “Rama to jail, Berisha to jail,” “Parliament of crime,” and “Your end has come,” as well as Italian-language slogans like “Edi Rama, son of a b****” and “Edi Rama, f*** off.” Slogans directed at the police included “Police of crime” as well as “Hiqni kapelet” and “Bashkohuni me ne”—calls for them to remove their caps and join the protest for the future of Albania.
©️Trivet
©️Trivet
The protests continued until around 4:00 PM, when the State Police detained 32 people and took them to Tirana’s police stations No. 1 and No. 3; two of them remain in custody. In its monitoring report, the Albanian Helsinki Committee confirmed—and stated in a press release—that among those detained were two women who did not understand the reason for the restriction of their liberty. One of them reported being taken away while simply filming.
Elsa Paja—an activist, artist, and designer who, together with her sisters in the artistic trio Trivet, produced the photos for this article—stated:
“They think they can scare us, but the behavior of the police forces only strengthens our resolve, as it demonstrates that the Flamingo Revolt is on the right side; every Albanian should join the protests.”
Carrie Ann Morgan, an American sociolinguistic anthropologist who has lived in Albania for years, was detained while on her way home, without being informed of her rights or the charges against her. Edison Lika—an activist with *Mesdhe* and a volunteer for *Drejtesi Sociale*—was dragged away while away from the protest itself; he had been broadcasting live online with News24, reporting on the police pursuit of citizens.
Mirela Ruko—an activist and Tirana city councilor for *Lëvizja Bashkë* (Together Movement)—was detained simply for being present at the protest, without facing any specific charges of violence, as reported by *Citizens*. Emiljando Kitaj, a member of the same party, also reported—as did activist Arnen Sula of the *Tek Bunkeri* association—the degrading and abusive treatment they received from the police while being taken to the station.
Also present at the police station was a protester with injuries to his head and arm, who had been transferred there after being taken from the military hospital. This mirrors the experience of other protesters who were removed from emergency rooms—where they were being treated for injuries caused by police-deployed agents—only to end up in police custody. Accounts also describe individuals being dragged along the ground and the use of tear gas in the presence of children, the elderly, the sick, and people with disabilities. Protester Skerdi Topalli specifically denounced the treatment of women and mothers who were dragged away by officers.
Among those taken to the police station was Vjolanda Peca, a journalist for Citizens.al, who was detained while documenting the protest. Zylyftar Bregu, a representative of the Albanian Helsinki Committee, condemned both her detention and interrogation; he argued that—even though she was not displaying her press badge at the time, despite having identified herself as a journalist—she should have been treated differently by the police and not subjected to a restriction of her liberty, a stance also voiced by the Association of Albanian Journalists (AGSh) in its statement.
However, the crackdown did not disperse the mobilization; protesters remained outside the entrances and exits of Parliament until well after 5:00 PM. At the conclusion of the protest, organizers called on citizens to march toward police stations No. 1 and No. 2, where those who had been detained were being held.
The Flamingo Revolution is neither dead nor backing down. The response on July 23rd demonstrates—and indeed reinforces—the Albanian people’s determination to resist. The flamingos continue to occupy public space despite intimidation, smear campaigns, barricades, water cannons, tear gas, and police detentions. The strength of the flamingos lies precisely in their persistence. The strength of the Albanian flamingos lies not in meeting violence with violence, but in continuing to occupy public space despite intimidation, delegitimization campaigns, barricades, water cannons, tear gas, and police detentions. Being peaceful does not mean accepting injustice, nor does it mean stopping or backing down.
Today is the 56th day, and the protest set to draw the diaspora is scheduled for August 14, 15, and 16.
Photos by Trivet
Read more:
https://citizens.al/it/2026/07/24/na-moren-vetem-se-ishim-aty-rrefimet-e-protestuesve-te-shoqeruar-ne-komisariate/
https://www.reporter.al/2026/07/23/oret-e-tensionit-mes-policise-dhe-protestuesve-perballe-parlamentit/
https://www.reuters.com/world/protesters-clash-with-albanian-police-demonstrations-triggered-by-kushner-resort-2026-07-23/
https://citizens.al/it/2026/07/23/protesta-para-kuvendit-gaz-lotsjelles-dhe-shoqerime-ne-komisariat/
https://agsh.al/2026/07/23/deklarate-mbi-protesten-e-dates-23-korrik-2026/
https://ahc.org.al/deklarate-per-shtyp-te-respektohen-dhe-hetohen-garancite-ligjore-te-perdorimit-te-lendeve-kimike-shoqerimit-dhe-arrestimit-ne-flagrance-te-protestuesve-para-kuvendit/
https://acqj.al/it/toke-pa-tituj-te-qarte-treg-i-hapur-per-kapitalin-e-huaj/
https://citizens.al/it/2026/07/07/nga-asnje-qindarke-te-4-2-milione-euro-per-koncertin-e-kanye-west/
https://citizens.al/it/2026/07/09/mjaft-me-spektakel-mbeshtesni-kulturen-aktivistet-kundershtojne-4-milione-e-per-kanye-west/
https://citizens.al/2026/07/08/para-nga-fondi-rezerve-per-koncertin-e-kanye-west-pikepyetje-mbi-kriterin-e-emergjences/
https://balkaninsight.com/2026/07/10/cancel-it-state-cash-for-kanye-west-show-sparks-outrage-in-albania/bi/
