South Africa accuses unspecified actors of a systematic “ethnic cleansing agenda” against Palestinians

According to testimonies gathered by AFP, Palestinians were forced to leave their belongings behind when crossing the Kerem Abu Salem crossing, and were only allowed to carry mobile phones, clothes and cash.

The arrival of 153 Palestinians at Johannesburg airport on a chartered plane from the Gaza Strip sparked a wave of sharp criticism from the South African government, which described the operation as “a clear agenda to cleanse Gaza and the West Bank of the Palestinian population.”

Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola stated in an official statement on Monday: “We do not want any more flights coming our way. This is a systematic agenda to remove Palestinians from their land to various parts of the world, something South Africa firmly opposes.”

For his part, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Friday that his country intends to clarify the circumstances surrounding the “mysterious” arrival of 153 Palestinians at Johannesburg Airport.

The passengers—including women and children—arrived last Thursday without Israeli exit stamps on their passports. They were detained by border police for more than 12 hours before being allowed entry after the NGO Gift of the Givers provided guarantees of accommodation and care.

But initial investigations revealed that the passengers were unaware of their final destination. “They told us they were promised ‘some kind of security in a welcoming country,’” Sarah Oostweizen, a representative of the organization, told AFP. In reality, some were directed to Indonesia, Malaysia, or India, while each individual paid around $2,000 to the Al-Majd company for the journey. According to testimonies gathered by AFP, the Palestinians were forced to leave their belongings behind when crossing the Kerem Abu Salem checkpoint and were only allowed to take mobile phones, clothing, and cash. It also emerged that the promised accommodation was booked for only one week, and their contact with Al-Majd was severed as soon as they settled in.