Albanian government accuses Tory minister of ‘verbally lynching’ country

Tory immigration minister Robert Jenrick has been accused of verbally “lynching” Albania after he shared a video praised the work of UK officials trying to “get them back to

Tirana.” Albanian foreign minister Olta Xhacka said she was shocked by the language used by Mr Jenrick in the Home Office clip about removal of failed asylum seekers and

offenders. Saying it was a “shameful” attempt at chasing “miserable votes”, she tweeted: “A verbal lynching of a whole nation in language that sounds like the minister is

declaring open season on Albanians.” Ms Xhacka said it was a “shameful singling out of a community from a minister of a great democracy that brings back horrifying memories

with an unbearable brutality”. The foreign minister also noted that Mr Jenrick’s video came after both governments put out a joint communique last month which praised the

“vibrant Albanian diaspora in the UK”. Mr Jenrick’s video was filmed at a Home Office removal centre ahead of a deportation flight to Tirana. The immigration said some on

the flight were “dangerous criminals”. “I’ve been meeting the fantastic staff who are working round the clock to find the Albanians, to detain them, to put them on to

coaches, to take them to the airport and get them back to Tirana,” he said. Last month Rishi Sunak announced a deal with Albania to allow the return of migrants to the

country within 31 days of arrival in the UK, as the government tries to crack down on migrant boats coming across the English Channel. Upwards of 10,000 Albanians have

arrived through this route to seek asylum last year, making up nearly a quarter of the record 44,000 people who made the dangerous journey.