In the Tragedy of Otranto, the Italian Navy vessel Sibilla collided with the Albanian civilian vessel Kateri i Radës, causing the latter to sink and leading to dozens of deaths.

The Tragedy of Otranto took place on 28 March 1997 when the Albanian ship Kateri i Radës sank in a collision with the Italian corvette Sibilla in the Strait of Otranto and at least 84 Albanians, aged 3 months to 69 years, lost their lives. The emigrants had been part of a large migration of Albanians to Italy during the 1997 Albanian civil unrest, that began after the collapse of several large-scale pyramid schemes. To prevent the unauthorized entry of migrants into Italy, the Italian Navy set up a procedure to board Albanian vessels whenever encountered, implementing a de facto blockade.

The Italian Navy is one of the four branches of Italian Armed Forces and was formed in 1946 from what remained of the Regia Marina after World War II. As of August 2014, the Italian Navy had a strength of 30,923 active personnel, with approximately 184 vessels in service, including minor auxiliary vessels. It is considered a multiregional and a blue-water navy.