BAJRAM CURRI, Albania: Monika Mulaj’s son was in his second year of college in Albania, studying to become a mechanical engineer, when he resolved to make a daring change: He told his parents he would leave his lifelong home for a new future in Britain.
“We had tried to fulfil all his requests, for books and clothing, food and a bit of entertaining. But he was still dissatisfied,” said Mulaj, a high school teacher in the northeastern town of Bajram Curri, which is in one of the country’s poorest regions.
Five years later, her now 25-year-old son is working two jobs in Britain and hardly thinks of returning to his homeland. “Albania is in regress,” he complains to his mother.
His path has been shared in recent years by thousands of young Albanians who have crossed the English Channel in small boats or inflatable dinghies to seek work in the UK. Their odyssey reflects the country’s anemic economy and a younger generation’s longing for fresh opportunities.
In 2018, only 300 people reached Britain by crossing the channel in small boats. The number rose to 45,000 in 2022, in part because of arrivals from Albania, a country in southern Europe that is negotiating for membership in the European Union.
Other migrants were from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Syria. Unlike many countries that fuel migration, Albania is considered safe by UK officials.
Britain is attractive to Albanians because it has a better economy and higher-paying jobs than neighboring countries such as Greece or Italy. Many Albanians also have family ties in the UK. Birmingham, for instance, has a large immigrant population from the Albanian town of Kukes, on the border with Kosovo.
The deputy mayor of Bajram Curri, Abedin Kernaja, said young people leave because of low wages and the difficulty of building “a comfortable family life.” His two sons are in the UK
Xhemile Tafaj, who owns a restaurant on a scenic plateau outside town, said “young people have no money to follow school, no job to work, no revenue at all.”
In such an environment, “only old men have remained and soon there will be empty houses,” Tafaj said.
Northeastern Albania is known for its natural Alpine beauty and green sloping landscape. The region is also famous for chestnuts, blueberries, blackberries and medicinal plants, as well as wool carpets and other handmade goods.
But those products offer scant job opportunities. The only jobs are at town halls, schools and hospitals, plus a few more at cafes and restaurants.
Petrit Lleshi, who owns a motel in Kukes, has struggled to find waiters for two years.
“I would not blame a 25-year-old leaving because of the low salaries here,” Lleshi said. “What our country offers is not enough to build a proper life.”
Few migrants seek a visa. They generally pay smugglers 5,000 to 20,000 euros ($5,300 to $21,200) for the dangerous, illegal crossing.
Many migrants undertake the trip with the expectation of a secure job, only to find after arriving in the UK that they must work in cannabis-growing houses for up to two years to pay back the trafficking money, according to reports by Albanian news outlets.
The steady stream of migrants has provoked clashes between British and Albanian leaders in recent months.
UK interior minister Suella Braverman has described the arrivals as an “invasion on our southern coast” — words that Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama blasted as a “crazy narrative” and an attempt to cover up for the UK’s failed border policies.
Albania also publicly protested what it called a “verbal lynching” by another UK official who made comments about Albanian immigrants. Rama accused the new UK Cabinet of scapegoating Albanians because it “has gone down a blind alley with its new policy resulting from Brexit.”
Rama was is in London Thursday for talks on immigration with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and accused UK officials of “singling out” Albanians for political purposes. “It has been a very, very disgraceful moment for British politics,” he told the BBC.
Sunak’s spokesman has said the UK welcomes and values Albanian migrants who come to the country legally, but that large numbers making illegal boat journeys to the UK are straining the asylum system.
In a statement after the meeting, Sunak and Rama welcomed progress to date following a taskforce action on organized crime and new UK guidance designating Albania a safe country, with around 800 migrants returning to Albania since December.
They also decided to create a joint team to assess Albania’s prison capacity until the end of April “with a view to returning all eligible Albanian nationals in the UK prison system.”
Rama has argued that easing visa requirements would help reduce the number of people arriving illegally.
In response to the spike in migration, some agencies are investing in programs that aim to offer opportunities to both countries — jobs for eager Albanians and a supply of remote workers for businesses in the UK
Elias Mazloum of Albania’s Social Development Investment group said that immigration is “a cancer.”
“We are offering chemotherapy after a lot of morphine used so far only has delayed immigration,” he said.
Under his project, 10 companies in Ireland will employ 10 young Albanians to work remotely in an apprenticeship paying 500 euros ($530) per month in the first year. Participants get a certificate from Ireland’s Digital Marketing Institute and then are hired remotely for 1,000 euros ($1,060) per month.
The vision is for the project to help establish a remote-work ecosystem in the region.
“Albania, and in particular the northeast region, has the advantage of working from a blank canvas” to attract digital nomads and encourage its young people to stay, said Declan Droney, a business trainer and consultant in Galway, in the west of Ireland.
A British project in Kukes supports small and midsize businesses in tourism and agriculture and will open a school teaching different professions.
The Albanian government has also offered incentives. Young couples who launch a small business will be exempt from taxes for up to three years, and couples who return from the UK will receive 5,000 euros ($5,300).
Mazloum’s organization has negotiated with Vodafone Albania to offer free high-speed Internet to remote workers.
“The eyes cannot get enough from the beauty of this place — the food, the fresh air. This added to very hospitable people, ambitious youth who like to work hard,” Mazloum said. “Imagine if you give a little hope to the people here, what they could make this place.”
Eager young Albanians risk everything for new future in UK
https://arab.news/jywmk
Eager young Albanians risk everything for new future in UK
- UK interior minister Suella Braverman has described the arrivals as an ‘invasion on our southern coast’ — words that Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama blasted as a ‘crazy narrative’
- Britain is attractive to Albanians because it has a better economy and higher-paying jobs than neighboring countries such as Greece or Italy
Russia’s recognition of Taliban rule marks start of geopolitical shift, experts say
- Afghan FM says Russia’s recognition would ‘set a good example for other countries’
- No other nation has formally recognized Taliban government after its 2021 takeover
KABUL: Russia’s formal recognition of the Taliban government as the legitimate authority in Afghanistan could mark the beginning of a major geopolitical shift in the region, experts said on Friday.
Russia became the first country on Thursday to officially recognize the Taliban rule, nearly four years since the group took control of Afghanistan.
Moscow’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, had “officially conveyed his government’s decision to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” during a meeting in Kabul with the country’s foreign minister, Amir Khan Mutaqqi, according to a statement issued late on Thursday by the Afghan Foreign Ministry.
This was followed by the Russian Foreign Ministry announcing hours later that it had accepted the credentials of a new ambassador of Afghanistan, saying that “official recognition of the government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will give impetus to the development of productive bilateral cooperation between our countries in various fields.”
Muttaqi welcomed the decision and said in a statement that it would “set a good example for other countries.”
No other nation has formally recognized the Taliban government after it seized power in 2021, after US-led forces staged a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan following 20 years of war.
However, a handful of countries, including China and the UAE have designated ambassadors to Kabul, while a number of foreign governments have continued the work of their diplomatic missions in the Afghan capital.
“Russia’s decision to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is a huge step. It’s one of the biggest achievements of the Islamic Emirate’s foreign policy in the last more than four years. It can be the beginning of a major geopolitical shift in the region and globally,” Naseer Ahmad Nawidy, political science professor at Salam University in Kabul, told Arab News.
“The US’ one-sided position to support Israel in the war against Gaza and attack Iran compelled Iran and Russia to take independent steps, ignoring the US in their decisions. It’s a new phase towards moving to a multipolar world.”
With Moscow’s role as a key political player in Central Asia, its recognition of the Taliban will likely influence other countries in the region to follow suit, he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has steadily built ties with the Taliban government, despite it being widely shunned by the international community due to repeated human rights violations.
The rights of Afghan women in particular have been curtailed since the Taliban takeover. They are barred from secondary schools and higher education, restricted in public places and not allowed to take up most of the jobs available in the country.
“I consider this recognition as a deep stab in the back as an Afghan woman and for Afghan women who have been deprived of life, education, work, freedom,” Afghan women’s rights advocate Riha Ghafoorzai told Arab News.
Under the Taliban, Afghan society has been turned “into a political prison, with no free press, no political opposition, and no civil rights,” she said.
“Recognizing such a rule is an insult to the sacrifices of thousands of Afghans who have fought for a modern, free, and democratic Afghanistan.”
With the recognition, Russia effectively broke an international consensus that was aimed at forcing the Taliban to listen to public demands, implement reforms and establish a legitimate system.
But instead, Moscow is sending “a message to the Taliban that there is no need for reform, the international community will soften and the regime will eventually be legitimized, even if it is against the nation,” Ghafoorzai added.
“Russia’s recognition of the Taliban is a profound political message that will have far-reaching and long-term consequences for the geopolitical balance of the region, international norms, and the fate of the Afghan people,” she said.
“Recognizing extremism is a great political betrayal of democracy. I hope that the international community will closely examine this situation for the future of humanity.”
Russia’s recognition of Taliban rule marks start of geopolitical shift, experts say
- Afghan FM says Russia’s recognition would ‘set a good example for other countries’
- No other nation has formally recognized Taliban government after its 2021 takeover
KABUL: Russia’s formal recognition of the Taliban government as the legitimate authority in Afghanistan could mark the beginning of a major geopolitical shift in the region, experts said on Friday.
Russia became the first country on Thursday to officially recognize the Taliban rule, nearly four years since the group took control of Afghanistan.
Moscow’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, had “officially conveyed his government’s decision to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” during a meeting in Kabul with the country’s foreign minister, Amir Khan Mutaqqi, according to a statement issued late on Thursday by the Afghan Foreign Ministry.
This was followed by the Russian Foreign Ministry announcing hours later that it had accepted the credentials of a new ambassador of Afghanistan, saying that “official recognition of the government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will give impetus to the development of productive bilateral cooperation between our countries in various fields.”
Muttaqi welcomed the decision and said in a statement that it would “set a good example for other countries.”
No other nation has formally recognized the Taliban government after it seized power in 2021, after US-led forces staged a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan following 20 years of war.
However, a handful of countries, including China and the United Arab Emirates have designated ambassadors to Kabul, while a number of foreign governments have continued the work of their diplomatic missions in the Afghan capital.
“Russia’s decision to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is a huge step. It’s one of the biggest achievements of the Islamic Emirate’s foreign policy in the last more than four years. It can be the beginning of a major geopolitical shift in the region and globally,” Naseer Ahmad Nawidy, political science professor at Salam University in Kabul, told Arab News.
“The United States’ one-sided position to support Israel in the war against Gaza and attack Iran compelled Iran and Russia to take independent steps, ignoring the US in their decisions. It’s a new phase toward moving to a multipolar world.”
With Moscow’s role as a key political player in Central Asia, its recognition of the Taliban will likely influence other countries in the region to follow suit, he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has steadily built ties with the Taliban government, despite it being widely shunned by the international community due to repeated human rights violations.
The rights of Afghan women in particular have been curtailed since the Taliban takeover. They are barred from secondary schools and higher education, restricted in public places and not allowed to take up most of the jobs available in the country.
“I consider this recognition as a deep stab in the back as an Afghan woman and for Afghan women who have been deprived of life, education, work, freedom,” Afghan women’s rights advocate Riha Ghafoorzai told Arab News.
Under the Taliban, Afghan society has been turned “into a political prison, with no free press, no political opposition, and no civil rights,” she said.
“Recognizing such a rule is an insult to the sacrifices of thousands of Afghans who have fought for a modern, free, and democratic Afghanistan.”
With the recognition, Russia effectively broke an international consensus that was aimed at forcing the Taliban to listen to public demands, implement reforms and establish a legitimate system.
But instead, Moscow is sending “a message to the Taliban that there is no need for reform, the international community will soften and the regime will eventually be legitimized, even if it is against the nation,” Ghafoorzai added.
“Russia’s recognition of the Taliban is a profound political message that will have far-reaching and long-term consequences for the geopolitical balance of the region, international norms, and the fate of the Afghan people,” she said.
“Recognizing extremism is a great political betrayal of democracy. I hope that the international community will closely examine this situation for the future of humanity.”
China helped Pakistan with ‘live inputs’ in conflict with India, Indian Army deputy chief says
- India earlier noted no visible Chinese support for Pakistan during the four-day standoff
- Pakistani officials have also denied claims of receiving active assistance from Beijing
NEW DELHI: China gave Islamabad “live inputs” on key Indian positions during Pakistan’s deadly conflict with its neighbor in May, the deputy chief of India’s army said on Friday, calling for urgent upgrades to the country’s air defense systems.
The nuclear-armed rivals used missiles, drones and artillery fire during the four-day fighting — their worst in decades — triggered by an April attack on Hindu tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that New Delhi blamed on Islamabad, before agreeing to a ceasefire.
Pakistan has denied involvement in the April attack.
India fought two adversaries during the conflict, with Pakistan being the “front face” while China provided “all possible support,” Lt. Gen. Rahul Singh said at a defense industry event in New Delhi.
“When the DGMO (director general of military operations) level talks were going on, Pakistan ... said that we know that your such and such important vector is primed and it is ready for action ... he was getting live inputs from China,” he said.
Singh did not elaborate on how India knew about the live inputs from China.
The Chinese foreign and defense ministries, and Pakistan army’s public relations wing did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
India’s relationship with China was strained after a 2020 border clash that sparked a four-year military standoff, but tensions began to ease after the countries reached a pact to step back in October.
India had earlier said that although Pakistan is closely allied with China, there was no sign of any actual help from Beijing during the conflict.
Regarding the possibility of China providing satellite imagery or other real-time intelligence, India’s chief of defense staff had said such imagery was commercially available and could have been procured from China or elsewhere.
Pakistani officials have previously dismissed allegations of receiving active support from China in the conflict, but have not commented specifically on whether Beijing gave any satellite and radar help during the fighting.
Beijing, which welcomed the ceasefire in May, has helped Pakistan’s struggling economy with investments and financial support since 2013.
The Chinese foreign minister also vowed support to Pakistan in safeguarding its national sovereignty and territorial integrity when he met his Pakistani counterpart days after the ceasefire.
Singh said that Turkiye also provided key support to Pakistan during the fighting, equipping it with Bayraktar and “numerous other” drones, and “trained individuals.”
Ankara has strong ties with Islamabad, and had expressed solidarity with it during the clash, prompting Indians to boycott everything from Turkish coffee to holidays in the country.
Turkiye’s defense ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Former Labour MP Sultana claims she will launch new party with ex-leader Corbyn
- Sultana accuses government of being ‘active participant in genocide’ in Gaza
- Talks held with pro-Palestine Independent Alliance MPs, but Corbyn yet to confirm role in new movement
LONDON: Former Labour MP Zarah Sultana has claimed she is set to start a new political party with Labour’s ex-leader, Jeremy Corbyn, after accusing the government of being “an active participant in genocide” in Gaza.
Sultana made the announcement on the social media platform X on Thursday evening, a day after Corbyn told the political TV show “Peston” on ITV that “there is a thirst for an alternative” in British politics.
In her post, Sultana claimed the Westminster political system was “broken” and that the new movement would focus on social justice in the UK and abroad.
“Labour has completely failed to improve people’s lives. And across the political establishment, from (Reform leader Nigel) Farage to (Prime Minister Sir Keir) Starmer, they smear people of conscience trying to stop a genocide in Gaza as terrorists.
“But the truth is clear: This government is an active participant in genocide. And the British people oppose it.”
She added that the choice before voters at the next general election would be between “socialism or barbarism” and claimed, in relation to the vote earlier this week on changes to benefit rules, “the government wants to make disabled people suffer; they just can’t decide how much.”
Sultana continued: “Jeremy Corbyn and I will co-lead the founding of a new party, with other independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country.”
Corbyn has yet to confirm whether he will be involved in the new party but admitted on “Peston” that he had been in discussions with the four Independent Alliance MPs elected in July 2024 on a platform of opposing the war in Gaza — Shockat Adam, Ayoub Khan, Adnan Hussain, and Iqbal Mohamed — about forming a party based on “peace rather than war.”
The BBC’s “Newsnight” program confirmed Sultana had held talks with Corbyn and the Independent Alliance earlier this week, but that the idea of co-leadership had not been received well by Corbyn.
Sunday Times journalist Gabriel Pogrund posted on X that a source told him Corbyn was “furious and bewildered” that Sultana made her announcement without consulting him first.
Israel denies it is committing genocide in Gaza.
Starmer has repeatedly demanded a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, describing the situation as “appalling and intolerable,” but has stopped short of accusing Israel of genocide.
Alastair Campbell, the former Labour director of communications, told the BBC that the “government’s handling” of the war in Gaza was a thorn in the side of the party, affecting people’s perception of Labour’s values.
Sultana was suspended by Labour last year for rebelling against the government in a vote on child benefits.
She has been a vocal critic of her former party, including last week, when the government sought to ban the group Palestine Action after activists broke into a Royal Air Force base and vandalized military aircraft.
Sultana posted “We are all Palestine Action” on X ahead of a vote to proscribe the group as a terrorist organization, which passed with just 26 MPs opposing the motion.
In her announcement about forming her new party, she said: “Westminster is broken, but the real crisis is deeper. Just 50 families now own more wealth than half the UK population. Poverty is growing, inequality is obscene, and the two-party system offers nothing but managed decline and broken promises.”
She continued: “We’re not an island of strangers; we’re an island that’s suffering. We need homes and lives we can actually afford, not rip-off bills we pay every month to a tiny elite bathing in cash. We need our money spent on public services, not forever wars.”
The announcement elicited mixed responses from Labour MPs.
John McDonnell, the former shadow chancellor who was also suspended at the same time as Sultana, posted on X: “I am dreadfully sorry to lose Zarah from the Labour Party.
“The people running Labour at the moment need to ask themselves why a young, articulate, talented, extremely dedicated socialist feels she now has no home in the Labour Party and has to leave.”
Dawn Butler, the MP for Brent East, said she could “understand (Sultana’s) frustration”
But Neil Coyle, MP for Bermondsey and Old Southwark, told The Times: “The hard left (is) seeking to damage Labour while the far right are on the march. As shabby as they ever were.”
French air traffic controllers’ strike disrupts flights for second day
- Civil aviation agency DGAC told airlines to cancel 40 percent of flights at the three main Paris airports
- Up to half of flights at France’s other airports, mostly in the south, were also affected
PARIS: A strike by French air traffic controllers entered its second day on Friday, leaving many passengers stranded at the start of Europe’s peak travel season.
Civil aviation agency DGAC told airlines to cancel 40 percent of flights at the three main Paris airports on Friday because of the strike, which the air traffic controllers say is over staff shortages and aging equipment.
Up to half of flights at France’s other airports, mostly in the south, were also affected, DGAC added.
“We are hostages of Paris,” said Mariano Mignola, an Italian tourist stranded in the French capital’s Orly airport with two young children.
“Today we had to go home and the first available flight is July 8. We have no flat, we can’t find a hotel, we can’t find a car, we can’t find a train, we can’t find anything,” he said. “We are in a panic, the children are scared and we don’t know what to do.”
French transport minister Philippe Tabarot called the strike unacceptable as did Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary, who branded it “another recreational strike by French air traffic controllers’ unions.”
On top of the cancelations, DGAC warned that passengers could be affected by delays and significant disruption.
The Airlines for Europe (A4E) lobby group said late on Thursday that 1,500 flights had been canceled over the two-day strike, affecting 300,000 passengers and causing cascading delays.
