Today, the Constitutional Court of Albania temporarily blocked the ratification of the agreement between Italy and Albania to process the asylum requests of a certain number of migrants arriving in Italy by sea in Albania.
Court President Olta Zakaj has scheduled a public hearing on the case for January 18 to determine whether the agreement violates Albania's constitution.
This decision of the court today means that the Parliament of Albania will not be able to ratify the agreement on Thursday, as previously planned.
Previously, the opposition parties submitted a request to the court claiming that the agreement contradicts the Albanian constitution and international law.
The opposition says that taking care of migrants in this way would deny "every right that the Albanian Constitution offers to all other citizens of Albania".
DON'T MISS IT
According to the agreement signed in November, Albania is supposed to accept up to 36.000 migrants for a year, or about 3.000 a month, who would try to come to Italy illegally.
Albania would place the migrants in two facilities, while Italy would quickly deal with their asylum requests.
Both reception centers, one in the port of Medova and the other near the former military airport in Gjader in northern Albania, were to be run by Italian officials, with Albanian guards overseeing security around the centers.
Italy also committed to pay for the construction and operation of both reception centers.
Bonus video:
