An Italian navy ship has taken back to Italy the first 12 migrants from newly opened asylum processing centers in Albania following a court decision in Rome.

An Italian coastguard vessel collected migrants held in reception centres in Albania on Saturday to transfer them to Italy, after a court ruling dealt a blow to Rome's plans to house migrants picked up at sea outside the EU.

The ruling was a major blow to the conservative government’s plan to have asylum claims heard in Albania instead of Italy.