The U.S. Embassy in Libya issued a public statement rejecting claims that the Trump administration is exploring a proposal to transfer as many as one million residents from Gaza to Libya.
“The report of alleged plans to relocate Gazans to Libya is untrue,” the Embassy in Libya wrote in a post on social media site X.
The statement came in response to a report published by NBC News on Friday. According to that report, unnamed sources alleged that the plan under discussion might include unfreezing billions of dollars in U.S. assets currently locked in Libya, to facilitate the move.
Individuals familiar with the matter suggested that preliminary talks have taken place between American officials and Libyan leadership regarding the possible relocation. Although no deal has been finalized, the report claims Israel has been kept in the loop about the progress of these conversations.
Several Arab nations that the Trump administration previously hoped would contribute to rebuilding efforts in Gaza have come out strongly against the concept of long-term relocation for Gazans.
The controversial proposal fits into Trump’s broader post-conflict vision for Gaza, which he once described as transforming the enclave into “the Riviera of the Middle East.” He reportedly first floated this vision during a February meeting with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
According to Trump’s vision, achieving such transformation would require the permanent relocation of Gaza’s population. This notion was quickly dismissed by both Egypt and Jordan, the two nations Trump had initially proposed as possible destinations for absorbing displaced Gazans.
In addition to Libya, the administration has reportedly looked into other potential host countries for Gazan resettlement. These include Syria—particularly after a shift in its government—as well as other African locations such as Sudan, Somalia, and the self-declared independent region of Somaliland.
{Matzav.com Israel}