South Africa has announced that it will no longer accept charter flights carrying Palestinians, following the controversial arrival of 153 passengers from Gaza earlier this month. The decision comes amid suspicions that the flights may be part of a wider agenda to forcibly relocate Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank.
Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola described the incident as “a clear agenda to cleanse Palestinians out of Gaza and the West Bank,” though Israeli authorities have not responded to this accusation. Israel has noted that South Africa had previously agreed to receive the 153 Palestinians.
According to the Palestinian embassy in South Africa, the passengers left Israel’s Ramon Airport and travelled via Nairobi, Kenya, “without any prior note or coordination.” The embassy accused an “unregistered and misleading organisation” of exploiting the situation, deceiving families, collecting money, and facilitating travel in an irregular manner. It said it was working with South African authorities to resolve the issue.
The flight landed at OR Tambo International Airport on Thursday, where passengers were initially denied entry due to the absence of departure stamps in their passports. Palestinians are allowed to enter South Africa visa-free for up to 90 days. After over 10 hours on board, a local charity intervened, and 130 passengers were permitted to disembark. Twenty-three had already continued to other destinations. President Cyril Ramaphosa described the decision to allow entry as motivated by “empathy [and] compassion.”
Speaking during a briefing on South Africa’s preparations for the G20 Leaders’ Summit, Lamola suggested the flight was part of “a broader agenda to remove Palestinians from Palestine into many different parts of the world.” He added: “This is a clearly orchestrated operation because they are not only being sent to South Africa. There are other countries where such flights have been sent.”
This follows a similar incident two weeks ago, when 176 Palestinians arrived in Johannesburg, with some continuing to other countries. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promoted the idea of “voluntary” resettlement of Gaza residents, a plan that has drawn international criticism.
South Africa has long expressed solidarity with the Palestinian cause, dating back to Nelson Mandela’s support for Palestinian statehood in the early 1990s. The country has been critical of Israel’s military actions in Gaza, filing a case at the International Court of Justice in 2023 accusing Israel of genocide—a claim Israel has strongly rejected. Large pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been held across the country, alongside smaller pro-Israel rallies.
Lamola said investigations into the flights are ongoing, stressing that South Africa will carefully scrutinise any future arrivals: “We do not want to be complicit in the forced relocation of Palestinians, and we will act to protect their rights and dignity.”
This latest development underscores the growing tensions surrounding the movement of Palestinians abroad and highlights South Africa’s determination to safeguard humanitarian principles.
