TWO African governments denied today that they had been approached by the United States and Israel to take in Palestinians they plan to forcibly remove from Gaza, while another claimed to have turned down the overtures.

The ethnic cleansing plan would call for Palestinians to be removed to Sudan, Somalia and the breakaway region of Somalia known as Somaliland.

Because all three places are poor and in some cases wracked by violence, the proposal also casts doubt on US President Donald Trump’s stated goal of deporting Gaza’s Palestinians to a “beautiful area.”

Officials from Sudan said they had rejected the plan, while officials from Somalia and Somaliland told reporters that they were not aware of any contacts.

Under Mr Trump’s plan, Gaza’s more than two million people would be exiled permanently. He has proposed that the US would take ownership of the territory, oversee a lengthy clean-up process and turn it into a property development project.

The idea of a mass transfer of Palestinians was once considered a fantasy of Israel’s ultranationalist fringe, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hailed it as a “bold vision” since Mr Trump presented the scheme at a White House meeting last month.

Palestinians in Gaza have rejected the proposal and dismissed Israeli claims that the departures would be voluntary. 

Arab nations have expressed vehement opposition and offered an alternative reconstruction plan that would leave the Palestinians in place. 

Human rights groups have warned that forcing or pressing the Palestinians to leave could amount to ethnic cleansing and therefore a potential war crime.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, US and Israeli officials confirmed the contacts with Somalia and Somaliland, while the US officials confirmed Sudan as well.

They said it was unclear how much progress the efforts had made or at what level the discussions had taken place.

The White House and Mr Netanyahu’s office both declined to comment officially.

Meanwhile, Hamas said it had accepted a proposal from mediators to release one living Israeli-American hostage and the bodies of four dual nationals who had died in captivity. 

The announcement came as talks continue in Qatar on the next stage of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.

The Palestinian group in Gaza did not immediately specify when the release of soldier Edan Alexander and the four bodies would occur and other countries that are party to the agreement did not immediately confirm the Hamas statement.

Mr Alexander was taken from his base in southern Israel on the border with Gaza during the Hamas attack of October 7 2023.