Italy’s migrant detention hubs in Albania undermine human rights, says Amnesty
Condition in Italian centers should be a "wake-up call" for EU return hub plans, NGO says.
Amnesty International has denounced Italy's migrant detention hubs in Albania as a violation of human rights, urging the European Union to reconsider the use of such offshore detention centers. In a report released on the deal between Rome and Tirana, the human rights organization's director, Eve Geddie, stated that the Italy-Albania model cannot be implemented in compliance with Italy's human rights obligations.
The human rights NGO accused the agreement of causing "cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment" and hindering people's right to seek asylum and justice due to limited access to legal representation and court proceedings.
Italy currently operates two migration centers in Albania, with one established in the village of Gjadër in 2024. Initially designed to hold migrants intercepted at sea, the facility later transitioned to housing male asylum seekers awaiting deportation. According to the report, over 500 individuals were housed at the Gjadër center in the period between April 11 and May 16, 2025. The Amnesty report documented 42 "critical" incidents, including self-harm, at least two suicide attempts, and a violent protest.
Concerns were raised over the lack of transparency in the selection process for transfers to Albania, which Amnesty deemed potentially discriminatory or punitive. The NGO also noted that the Italian government has obstructed independent monitoring of the agreement, limiting parliamentary oversight and bypassing typical legislative procedures.
Amnesty claimed it lacked access to the detention centers and relied on information from the Italian Ministry of the Interior, court documents, civil society networks, legislative reports, and interviews with United Nations agencies and legal experts to compile its findings.
While the arrangement remains contentious, it has gained traction within the EU, with Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani advocating for "Albania-style" centers in various African nations and other regions of origin and transit. The Italian government has faced legal challenges both domestically and at the European Court of Justice, with a Rome court ruling in 2024 that migrants from Bangladesh and Egypt—sent to Albania—could not be held offshore, as their origin countries were deemed unsafe.
A recent EU advisory opinion suggested that EU law does not preclude countries from establishing detention centers outside their borders to process failed asylum-seekers, provided that their rights are fully protected.
Written by urgent.news from Politico EU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
