Madar (Tripoli) - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Libya's Government of National Unity (GNU) on Sunday, October 25, 2026, summoned the chargé d'affaires of the US embassy to Libya and handed her a formal protest note over remarks by US President Donald Trump that it described as offensive to Libya and its people, the Libyan News Agency (LANA) reported.
The note requested clarifications and a correction of the remarks. In a statement, the ministry said Libya, as a sovereign state, rejects remarks that harm the dignity of its people or drag the country into electoral debates and internal political calculations, adding that respect for sovereignty, diplomatic norms and mutual respect are the foundations of relations between states.
Trump made the remarks on Saturday, October 24, at an election rally in Perry, Georgia, describing Libya, Yemen, Somalia and Haiti as "dirty countries", according to LANA and Tunisian news site Webdo, which said he was criticizing his Democratic opponents' migration policy.
Libya's Presidential Council said it "categorically rejects" the remarks, calling them "an unacceptable transgression and an affront to the dignity of a people". It said it had directed the foreign ministry to summon the head of the US diplomatic mission and would pursue the matter through diplomatic channels "until there is an explicit apology and a correction", recalling the 1796 and 1805 treaties of peace and friendship between the two countries.
The speaker of the House of Representatives also condemned the remarks and called on the US president to offer "an explicit and clear apology" to the Libyan people, while reaffirming Libya's commitment to friendship and cooperation with the United States based on mutual respect.
Earlier on Sunday, GNU head Abdul Hamid Dbeibah said Libya is a sovereign state and rejects any insult to it or its people. "We are keen on our relations with the United States on the basis of mutual respect, and we will not accept that the dignity of Libya and its people become material for electoral debates," he said.
