Key takeaways:

• An Italian naval ship has transferred 49 migrants to Albania for asylum processing.
• This marks Italy’s third attempt to utilize Albanian centers for migrant processing after previous court rejections.
• Human rights groups have criticized the agreement between Italy and Albania, calling it a “cruel experiment.”
• The European Court of Justice is set to review these migration practices against EU law.
• Arrivals in Italy have more than doubled this year compared to the same period in 2022.

In a significant move amidst growing migrant arrivals, Italy has resumed its controversial plan to process asylum seekers in Albania, dispatching an Italian Navy ship that arrived on Tuesday with 49 migrants. This transfer is part of a larger agreement established in November 2023 between Rome and Tirana, which allows for the relocation of intercepted migrants from Italy to Albania for processing at newly constructed centers. Upon arrival at the port of Shengjin, approximately 66 kilometers from Tirana, the migrants will be assessed before being sent to the Gjader accommodation center located approximately 22 kilometers east of Shengjin.

However, this resumption comes after two previous shipments in late 2023 were blocked by Italian judges who ruled that the countries of origin for the migrants—predominantly from Bangladesh, Egypt, Ivory Coast, and Gambia—were not deemed safe for potential repatriation. The Italian courts cited concerns about the possibility of returning individuals to unsafe conditions as a basis for halting such transfers. The situation has now escalated to the European Court of Justice, which is set to review these migrations to ensure compliance with EU law on asylum seekers, especially regarding expedited procedures that could lead to deportation.

Italy’s government, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, aims to revive these processing centers in Albania following a late December ruling from Italy's highest court, which indicated that Italian judges could not interfere with governmental policy regarding safe countries for repatriation. This ruling offers a limited mandate, permitting lower courts to evaluate cases on an individual basis without overriding broader policy decisions. As of 2023, over 3,500 migrants have arrived in Italy, drastically increasing by more than double compared to the same calendar period last year, following a substantial overall arrival count in 2022.

This controversial measure has been welcomed by some, as it aims to address the increasing numbers of migrants arriving in Europe. Still, it has drawn widespread condemnation from human rights advocates who argue that such externalization of asylum processing undermines international legal standards and creates a dangerous precedent for migrant rights in the EU. Advocacy organizations, including Amnesty International, have referred to the agreement as a "stain on the Italian government," highlighting the ethical implications of outsourcing migrant processing to a non-EU state.

For further details, visit Le Monde, AP News, and Al Jazeera.