One year after Italy opened migrant camps in Albania intended to hold people intercepted at sea, the legally contested centres lie almost empty.

Numerous NGOs have criticised living conditions inside the camps, and Italian courts have struck down several attempted deportations to Albania.

But as the European Union discusses the possibility of creating its own “return hubs”, Italy’s far-right government appears committed to sending migrants to offshore detention centres in Albania.

– ‘Very concerning’ –

On October 16, 2024, two detention centres opened in the port of Shengjin and the village of Gjader, located in northern Albania but managed by Rome.

That same day, dozens of cameras filmed the arrival of the first Italian naval ship carrying 16 men from Egypt and Bangladesh, arrested a

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