Dozens of Instagram accounts belonging to Albanian activists, opposition figures, journalists and people documenting protests have been suspended or disabled, raising questions about the use of Meta’s reporting and moderation systems.
A major wave of suspensions was reported on September 2, as the so-called “Flamingo Revolution” protests against Prime Minister Edi Rama’s government and projects linked to Jared Kushner continued.
Among the affected accounts were those belonging to opposition MP and Mundësia leader Agron Shehaj, activist Gent Progni, and protest-related pages including “Students in Protest” and “Flamingo Revolution.”
Initial reports identified at least 23 affected accounts. Independent MP Marjana Koçeku later claimed that more than 200 pages had been shut down, although that figure has not been independently verified.
Digital rights organization Repro Uncensored said it had documented dozens of cases. According to the organization, some accounts received repeated copyright complaints before being disabled.
Meta has acknowledged that some accounts were removed by mistake and has begun restoring them. Shehaj’s account was restored after approximately 24 hours, while Progni also regained access following an appeal.
The issue has also drawn attention in Europe. Italian MEP Sandro Gozi has called for answers from Meta, while the European Democratic Party has questioned whether coordinated mass reporting or other abuse of Meta’s systems may have been involved.
The Albanian government has denied any involvement. Prime Minister Edi Rama has said his administration had nothing to do with the account suspensions.
But on September 5, the controversy took another turn.
Euronews Albania’s Instagram account became inaccessible and displayed “user not found.”
The timing immediately attracted attention. Less than 24 hours earlier, Euronews Albania had interviewed Sandro Gozi about the wave of Instagram suspensions.
Gozi had called for greater transparency from Meta and questioned whether the suspensions were the result of a technical problem, coordinated reporting or other interference with the platform.
The European Democratic Party subsequently expressed solidarity with Euronews Albania and called on Meta to explain what happened and restore the account.
So far, there is no verified evidence that the Albanian government, Edi Rama or Jared Kushner ordered Meta to shut down these accounts.
What has been documented is a wave of suspensions affecting activists, opposition figures and protest-related accounts, while Meta has acknowledged that some accounts were removed in error.
The Euronews Albania case has added further concern, particularly because of the timing of the suspension.
However, the timing alone does not prove that the incidents are connected.
The key question remains unanswered: Was this a major failure of Meta’s moderation systems, coordinated abuse of its reporting tools, or something more deliberate?
