Somalia Says No Talks On Resettling Palestinians From Gaza

Somalia and its breakaway region of Somaliland have not received any proposal from the United States or Israel to resettle Palestinians from Gaza, their foreign ministers said on Friday, with Mogadishu saying it categorically rejected any such move.

The Associated Press quoted US and Israeli officials as saying their governments had contacted officials from Sudan, Somalia and Somaliland to discuss using their territory for resettling Palestinians from the devastated Gaza Strip.

Sudanese officials said they rejected the proposal by the United States, and officials from Somalia and Somaliland said they were unaware of any contacts, AP reported.

Somalias Foreign Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi said his country would categorically reject any proposal or initiative, from any party, that would undermine the Palestinian people's right to live peacefully on their ancestral land.

He told Reuters that Somalias government had not received any such proposal, adding that Mogadishu was against any plan that would involve the use of Somali territory for the resettlement of other populations.