An Italian navy vessel has brought back the initial group of 12 migrants from Albanias newly-established asylum processing facilities‚ following a court verdict in Rome. The ruling on 10/18/24 presents an early hurdle for the five-year agreement between Italy and Albania‚ which aims to accommodate 3000 migrants monthly‚ picked up by Italian coast guard
The court in Rome didnt approve the detention of 12 migrants arguing that Bangladesh and Egypt (their countries of origin) werent safe enough for their return. The ship departed from Shengjin port‚ located 66 km northwest of Tirana. Earlier this week four other migrants were rejected by center staff – two due to health issues and two for being underage
Giorgia Meloni criticized the judges decision‚ stating that considering countries like Bangladesh and Egypt unsafe would make the Albania program unworkable. She announced a Cabinet meeting for 10/21/24 to address this obstacle. Meloni said‚ “Well meet to approve some norms that will allow us to overcome this obstacle; I believe its up to the government and not magistrates to establish which countries can be considered safe“
The agreement to outsource asylum-seeker housing to a non-EU country has been praised by some nations facing high migrant arrivals. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen endorsed it as “out-of-box thinking“ in tackling EU migration. However‚ human rights organizations view it as setting a dangerous precedent
Weʼll meet to approve some norms that will allow us to overcome this obstacle
The controversial deal has sparked debates on migrant rights and EU migration policies – its future remains uncertain as legal challenges and practical implementation issues continue to emerge