Albanian premier rejects Israeli media report claiming Gazans might be relocated to his country

"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 posted on X.

The Albanian leader 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 amid the second year of genocide in Gaza," but clarified that Albania was not requested by anyone to take in refugees, nor could it "even consider taking on any such responsibility."

Rama highlighted Albania’s "strong friendships" with Israel, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and "the Palestinian people, whose state Albania recognized a very long time ago." He emphasized that Albania, as a European nation, is not located in the Middle East and cannot do more than other European countries in this matter.

"Yet, 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 concluded.

Earlier, Israeli media reported that Israel viewed US President Donald Trump’s proposal for Jordan and Egypt to accept Palestinian refugees as unrealistic, prompting Washington to explore other options, including Albania, amid escalating international pressure to address the Gaza humanitarian crisis.