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On Friday, a Rome court ruled against the detention of the 12 migrants, stating they could not be returned to their home countries notably Bangladesh and Egypt due to safety concerns.
An Italian navy vessel returned 12 migrants to Italy from an Albanian center on Saturday. This follows a court decision questioning the Italian government’s move to transfer migrant processing to the Balkan nation. www.trendsnafrica.com
The migrants boarded the Guardia Costiera ship at the Shengjin port for their trip to Italy. They were among 16 intercepted in international waters and taken to two centers in Albania earlier this week.
On Friday, a Rome court ruled against the detention of the 12 migrants, stating they could not be returned to their home countries notably Bangladesh and Egypt due to safety concerns. The contentious deal to transfer the housing of asylum-seekers to a non-EU country has been praised by certain nations, including Italy, which are facing a significant influx of migrants. Human rights organizations have condemned the outsourcing move as a dangerous example.
Meanwhile, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticized judges on Friday for ruling against the right-wing government’s initiative to hold 12 migrants at newly established centers in Albania. She said this marks a significant obstacle in the administration’s strategy to transfer some of its migrant processing to the Balkan nation.
During a visit to Lebanon, Meloni told reporters that labeling countries like Bangladesh and Egypt as unsafe would effectively exclude nearly all migrants from the Albania program, rendering it impractical. She observed that the ruling by the judges in Rome was biased. This was evident as some judges had already criticized the agreement with Albania before even considering the details.
The ruling marks an initial obstacle in the agreement between Italy and Albania that Meloni’s administration has praised as a new “model” for addressing illegal migration.
16 migrants, 10 from Bangladesh and 6 from Egypt were moved to Albania by an Italian navy ship on Wednesday, following government directives. This transfer was part of the accelerated border procedures outlined in the Italy-Albania agreement. However, they are now required to be sent back to Italy. Italy will spend 670 million euros (USD 730 million) on the centers over the next five years. These facilities are managed by Italy and fall under its jurisdiction, with Albanian guards providing external security.
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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has supported the agreement, calling it an example of innovative thinking in addressing migration challenges within the European Union.
