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Albania rejects report of plans to absorb Gazan refugees
Prime Minister Edi Rama vehemently denies reports of negotiations with the United States to host 100,000 Palestinians, who 'have endured a hellish war following the medieval horrors of October 7'


The Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has firmly denied the information from the Israeli channel Channel 12 on Monday that his government is set to hold talks with the Trump administration to host up to 100,000 Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. "I haven’t heard something so fake in quite some time—and there’s been a lot of fake news lately! It is absolutely not true," Rama said on X, attaching a screenshot of the supposed scoop from a Channel 12 journalist.
He expressed "full respect and solidarity for the people of Gaza, who have been dehumanized by the savage Hamas regime and have endured a hellish war following the medieval horrors of October 7," but stressed that "Albania has not been asked by anyone, nor can we even consider to take on any such responsibility."
Rama touted his country's relations with Middle East countries such as Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait – "and, of course, the Palestinian people, whose state Albania recognized a very long time ago."
Despite these ties, its location in Europe made it an illegitimate site to absorb Palestinians.
"We wish and pray that the Palestinian people are given the chance to live in their own state, as free people under democratic rule, and that Hamas will never again be able to harm Israel – or, first and foremost, the Palestinians themselves," he said.
According to Channel 12, Israel considers US President Donald Trump's call for Jordan and Egypt to host Palestinian refugees unrealistic, pushing Washington to look for other potential host countries. NBC News reported that the US is considering Indonesia as a possible destination while Gaza is being reconstructed after more than a year of war. Egypt and Jordan have strongly opposed the idea of hosting Gazans, while Israeli right-wing leaders have called for Jerusalem to "encourage the emigration" of Palestinians from Gaza.