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STORY: :: An Italian lawmaker confronts Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over her migrant camp plan in Albania

:: Shengjin, Albania

:: June 5, 2024

:: Riccardo Magi, Italian lawmaker

"This tells us what is going to happen. If this happens on camera, to an MP, you can imagine what will happen to those poor people who will be locked in here."

::Meloni visits the reception camps where her government plans to put thousands of migrants picked up at sea

::Giorgia Meloni, Italian Prime Minister

"We will have inaugurated a completely new phase in the management of the migration problem, the agreement could be replicated in many countries, it could become a part of the structural solution of the European Union."

Riccardo Magi, from the More Europe party, walked towards Meloni's motorcade as she was leaving a meeting with her Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama.

Magi expressed discontent at Italy's migrant hotspot deal with Albania, and Meloni exited the vehicle to confront the Italian lawmaker.

Italy agreed to a deal with Albania to set up a center in Gjader and another in the seaside town of Shengjin, about 12 miles away, to host migrants rescued at sea by Italian boats while their asylum applications are processed.

The deal has drawn criticism from human rights activists who say it will be harder for Italian courts to promptly process asylum requests or appeals from people hosted in another country, and lengthy procedures could put an unjustified burden on migrants.

The deal was challenged in Albania's Constitutional Court in January, but the verdict was in favor of the government of Prime Minister Edi Rama. While U.N. officials have criticized the Italy-Albania deal, the European Commission has said it does not appear to breach EU law as it falls outside its jurisdiction.

By helping out Meloni, the government in Tirana is securing her support as it pushes to become an EU member.