Italy delivers migrants under new deal
Published: 04:10 PM,Oct 16,2024 | EDITED : 08:10 PM,Oct 16,2024
Migrants and security officials walk as they arrive in Albania, in Shengjin. — Reuters
SHENGJIN: A ship carrying the first group of migrants to be processed in Albania under a deal with Italy arrived in the port of Shengjin on Wednesday morning. The Libra, an Italian navy ship, docked at Shengjin, footage showed. Sixteen migrants were escorted into a newly built processing centre at the port, ringed by a high metal fence and adorned with Italian and EU flags. Rising tension in Europe over migration issues has seen many nations, including Germany and Poland, propose or adopt tougher policies. The UK's previous government had planned to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, although Prime Minister Keir Starmer scrapped the plan after taking office in July. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said this week that her country was setting an example for the rest of Europe with the Albanian scheme. Italy has said only 'non-vulnerable' men coming from countries classified as safe would be sent to Albania, to a limit of 36,000 migrants a year. — Reuters