Why did so man Albanians flee to Italy after the Ottoman Empire took over in the late 1400s?

by trentonmoore

I've been going (really far) back into my genealogical history, to find that my ancestors were Albanians who fled to Sicily after the rise of the Ottoman Empire. While I think muslim oppression is a bit of a given, might there have been other factors that would have led to this? What would have been or would have changed in the daily life of a Byzantine Christian from Albania?

wantmywings

Many of the people who left Albania fought with George Kastrioti. Staying would have been a death sentence most likely.