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The Trump administration is developing a plan that could see up to 1 million Palestinians permanently relocated from the Gaza Strip to Libya, according to a report published by NBC News.
The American news outlet, citing five unnamed sources with knowledge of the effort, reported that the plan has progressed far enough that the administration has directly discussed it with Libya's leadership, according to two people with direct knowledge of the plans and a former U.S. official.
In exchange for resettling Palestinians, the administration would potentially release to Libya billions of dollars of funds that the U.S. froze more than a decade ago, three sources told NBC News. The same sources indicated that no final agreement has been reached, and that Israel has been kept informed of the administration's discussions.
After the publication of the NBC report, an unnamed State Department spokesperson denied the claims, telling the network: "These reports are untrue. The situation on the ground is untenable for such a plan. Such a plan was not discussed and makes no sense."
Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official, told NBC News that Hamas was not aware of any discussions about moving Palestinians to Libya. Naim emphasized Palestinian determination to remain in their homeland.
"Palestinians are very rooted in their homeland, very strongly committed to the homeland and they are ready to fight up to the end and to sacrifice anything to defend their land, their homeland, their families, and the future of their children," Naim stated, adding that Palestinians "are exclusively the only party who have the right to decide for the Palestinians, including Gaza and Gazans, what to do and what not to do."
Israeli government representatives declined to comment on the report.
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Libya has experienced significant political instability since its civil war began nearly 14 years ago, following the toppling of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. The country is currently divided between two rival governments – one in the west led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah and another in the east led by Khalifa Haftar – that are actively and violently competing for control.
The U.S. State Department currently advises Americans against traveling to Libya "due to crime, terrorism, unexploded landmines, civil unrest, kidnapping, and armed conflict," raising questions about the suitability of the country for resettlement purposes.
According to the NBC report, Trump administration officials have discussed providing Palestinians with financial incentives such as free housing and a stipend to encourage voluntary relocation, according to a former U.S. official cited in the report.
The logistics of relocating up to 1 million people to Libya would present significant challenges. The report noted that multiple transportation methods – air, land, and sea – are being considered by the administration.
NBC calculated that it would take approximately 1,173 flights on the world's largest passenger airplane at maximum capacity to transport 1 million people. Libya's current population is estimated at about 7.36 million, meaning the addition of 1 million people would be proportionally equivalent to the U.S. absorbing about 46 million new residents.
The reported plan aligns with comments President Trump made in February about his vision for post-war Gaza, which he said the U.S. would seek to "own" and rebuild as what he called "the Riviera of the Middle East."
"We're going to take over that piece, develop it and create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it will be something the entire Middle East can be proud of," Trump stated at the time.
During his recent Middle East trip, Trump reiterated his concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, stating: "We're looking at Gaza. And we've got to get that taken care of. A lot of people are starving. A lot of people are - there's a lot of bad things going on."
According to some sources cited by NBC, Syria is also under discussion as a possible resettlement location for Palestinians from Gaza. Trump recently announced the lifting of sanctions on Syria and met briefly with the country's new leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa.
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