Italy sends another 8 migrants to Albania, despite failing to process the first group

SHENGJIN, Albania — An Italian navy ship docked Friday at the Albanian port of Shengjin with eight migrants who will be processed there after they were intercepted in international waters, a month after another group was turned away for failing the vetting process.

It is only the second transfer of migrants since two migrant processing centers started operating in October.

The same ship transferred to Albania the first 16 migrants from Bangladesh and Egypt. Four were taken to Italy the same day because they were minors or had health issues. Twelve others were brought back to Italy three days later, following a ruling by Rome judges who rejected their detention because their countries of origin — Bangladesh and Egypt — were not safe enough for them to be sent back.

The naval ship Libra, which can carry 200 people besides crew, left Italy’s southernmost island of Lampedusa on Wednesday with eight men on board, according to the Italian media. Italian Interior Ministry spokesperson Francesco Kamel had confirmed the Libra was heading to Albania, but declined to give out any further information until the operation was complete. He didn't say when it would arrive, nor how many people were on board.

The Italian media reported that, out of 1,200 migrant arrivals on Lampedusa over the past two days, just eight male adults traveling without families met Albania's screening criteria, including that they come from countries deemed “safe” for repatriation.

The number of people reaching Italy along the central Mediterranean migration route — mainly from Bangladesh, Syria, Tunisia and Egypt — has fallen by 60% in 2024 compared to 2023. As of Nov. 7, according to the Italian Interior Ministry, 57,767 migrants have arrived by sea in 2024.

A court ruling out of Rome had shortened the list of countries considered “safe” by law, meaning that Rome can repatriate migrants from those countries who didn’t win asylum using a fast-track procedure. Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni slammed the Rome court ruling, and said that deeming countries such as Bangladesh and Egypt unsafe means that virtually all migrants would be barred from the Albania program, making it unworkable.

On Oct. 21, Italy’s far-right government approved a new decree aimed at overcoming those judicial hurdles that risked derailing a controversial five-year migration deal with Albania, signed in 2023 by Meloni and her Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama.

Under the deal, up to 3,000 migrants intercepted by the Italian coast guard in international waters each month will be sheltered in Albania, and vetted for possible asylum in Italy or be sent back to their countries.

Italy has agreed to welcome those migrants who are granted asylum, while those whose applications are rejected face deportation directly from Albania.

The agreement to outsource the housing of asylum-seekers to a non-European Union member country, defended by Meloni as a new model to handle illegal migration, has been hailed by some countries that, like Italy, are experiencing a high level of migrant arrivals.

Visiting Albania in October, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen refused to give her opinion of the agreement, saying only that it was being closely monitored.

Human rights groups and non-governmental organizations that are active in the Mediterranean have slammed the agreement as a dangerous precedent that conflicts with international laws.

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Semini reported from Tirana; Colleen Barry contributed from Milan.