Investigation into migration deal between Italy and Albania wins the 2026 Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize for Journalism

On Wednesday, the 2026 Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize for journalism was awarded to an investigation into the migration deal between Italy and Albania.

The winning story, by journalists Giacomo Zandonini, from Italy, and Maite Vermeulen, from the Netherlands, and published on the Dutch journalism platform De Correspondent, focuses on a deal under which Italy built a detention facility and asylum processing centre on Albanian territory.

The Prize was awarded at a ceremony in the European Parliament by a representative of an independent European-wide Jury composed of journalists from all EU member states. Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, and Pina Picierno, Vice-President responsible for the Prize, participated in the event held in the European Parliament’s Daphne Caruana Galizia Press Room in Strasbourg.

President Metsola said: "Nine years after Daphne Caruana Galizia was brutally murdered for exposing corruption, our determination to see justice done remains as strong as ever. Those who wanted to silence her failed. Her stories traveled further than ever, and her courage continues to inspire. The Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize honours that courage and commitment to the truth. The European Parliament will continue to stand with journalists, defend press freedom and fight for justice. We will keep going.”

Between 4 May and 31 July 2026, hundreds of journalists from the 27 EU countries submitted their stories for consideration. Ten of the 344 submissions were shortlisted by the jury before the winner was chosen.

About the Winning Story

Journalists Giacomo Zandonini and Maite Vermeulen spent 18 months investigating the migration deal between Italy and Albania for De Correspondent. According to the investigation, the purpose of the agreement was to intercept migrants on their way to Italy and bring them to Albania. a country outside the EU, where they were rejected through an expedited asylum process, and deported to their home countries.

Their story traces the origins of the deal and examines why several EU countries regard it as an “innovative model” for the future of European migration policy. To uncover the full picture, the journalists submitted more than thirty Freedom of Information requests across six European countries, as well as to the European Commission, the Council, and the European border agency Frontex. They followed financial trails and interviewed staff in the centres, migrants in detention, lawyers, Members of Parliament, government representatives and local residents in Albania.

The authors underlined significant obstacles throughout the investigation. More particularly, journalists were denied access to the Italian-run centres in Albania, while basic information (including the number of people detained), remained undisclosed. Expenditure was channeled through emergency procedures, bypassing public procurement processes, and staff were required to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Working alongside photo editor Bebe Blanco Agterberg, information designer Sharon Coone and photographer Francesco Bellina, the journalists examine human rights concerns surrounding the deal and its implications for the fundamental principles of the European rule of law.

About the Prize

The Prize is a tribute to the Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who was assassinated in October 2017. It rewards, on a yearly basis, outstanding journalism that promotes or defends the core principles and values of the European Union, such as human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights.

The Prize is open to professional journalists and teams of professional journalists of any nationality to submit in-depth stories that have been published or broadcast by a media outlet based in one of the 27 European Union member states.

The Prize itself, and the €20,000 prize money, demonstrate the European Parliament’s strong support for investigative journalism and the protection of journalists around the world.

Past winners

2025 - Investigation into the hidden financial networks enabling Russia’s sanction-evading oil trade (coordinated by Follow the Money)

2024 - Investigation on missing unaccompanied child migrants (Lost in Europe)

2023 - Joint investigation on the Pylos migrant boat shipwreck (Solomon, in collaboration with Forensis, StrgF/ARD, and The Guardian)

2022 - Documentary on “The Central African Republic under Russian Influence” by Clément Di Roma and Carol Valade (ARTE/France24/Le Monde)

2021 - “The Pegasus Project” (coordinated by the Forbidden Stories)

Who was Daphne Caruana Galizia?

Daphne Caruana Galizia was a Maltese journalist, blogger and anti-corruption activist who reported extensively on corruption, money laundering, organised crime, sale of citizenship and the Maltese government’s links to the Panama Papers. Following harassment and threats, she was murdered in a car bomb explosion on 16 October 2017. The outcry over the authorities’ handling of her murder investigation ultimately prompted the resignation of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. Critical of failings in the investigation, in December 2019, MEPs called on the European Commission to take action and have revisited the issue at every turn since then – including with a topical resolution in 2023 condemning the limited progress in bringing those responsible to justice. Until this date, five persons have been imprisoned for executing the murder. However, the mastermind behind the assassination is yet to be convicted.