Albanian Parliament approves controversial deal to hold migrants for Italy

By LLAZAR SEMINI
Associated Press

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albania’s Parliament has approved a deal for the country to hold thousands of asylum seekers for Italy despite protests from opposition lawmakers and human rights groups. Under the five-year deal, Albania would shelter up to 3,000 migrants rescued from international waters at any one time. With asylum requests expected to take around a month to process, the number of asylum seekers sent to Albania could reach up to 36,000 in a year. Parliament voted 77-0 on Thursday to approve the deal, with 63 lawmakers absent and conservative opposition lawmakers trying to disrupt the vote with whistles. The deal has worried many human rights activists, but the EU sees the agreement as a possible future template.