South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the “mysterious” arrival in the country of a chartered plane carrying 153 Palestinians from Gaza will be investigated.

The group arrived at OR Tambo International Airport, but were initially denied entry and remained detained on the plane for more than 10 hours, as they “did not have the usual exit stamps in their passports,” local authorities reported.

Finally, most were allowed entry thanks to the intervention of a local charity and the government’s “empathy and compassion,” Ramaphosa stated.

The circumstances of their departure from Gaza and journey to South Africa are still unclear.

South Africa has maintained strong support for the Palestinian cause throughout the conflict between Hamas and Israel in Gaza.

Ramaphosa claimed that the group “somehow mysteriously boarded a plane that flew over Nairobi” and arrived in South Africa, according to the News24 website.

The Israeli military body COGAT, which controls the Gaza border crossings, stated: “The residents left the Gaza Strip after COGAT received approval from a third country to receive them.”

It did not specify which country. According to the Palestinian embassy in South Africa, the group departed from Israel's Ramon Airport and flew to the country via Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, "without any prior notice or coordination." A statement from the embassy indicated that "an unregistered and deceptive organization took advantage of the tragic humanitarian situation of our people in Gaza, deceived families, raised money, and facilitated their travel in an irregular and irresponsible manner." The BBC requested comment from the Kenyan government. Of the 153 passengers, 23 managed to fly to other destinations, while 130 were admitted to the country, according to South African authorities. During an event in Johannesburg, Ramaphosa stated that the Interior Minister had informed him about the Palestinians' arrival.

“We cannot turn them away,” the president said in response to the report, according to News24.

“Even without the necessary documents, these are people from a country ravaged by war and conflict.”

Comprehensive Assessment

The South African president also told the press that his government will conduct a thorough assessment of the matter and report on how this situation arose, according to public broadcaster SABC.

Home Minister Leon Schreiber stated that Palestinian passport holders met the requirements to enter South Africa without a visa for 90 days.

However, the lack of exit stamps, return tickets, or accommodation addresses in some travelers' documentation resulted in their entry being initially denied.

Once it was established that the absence of this information “did not indicate that the travelers wished to apply "Asylum" and their accommodation was confirmed, they were allowed entry.

"All the travelers have valid passports and, at the moment, none have requested asylum," he stated.

The South African charity Gift of the Givers announced it will offer accommodation to the group in the country.

"We come from Gaza"

Civil society organizations in South Africa called for an investigation into the conditions under which the Palestinians fled Gaza and the exact route of the plane.

One of the Palestinians, speaking to local broadcaster eNCA TV, expressed relief at being in South Africa, describing it as a country of "peace, law, and justice."

"We come from Gaza, where we faced death daily. We have survived a two-year war and are lucky to be here," said a man who fled with his wife and two children.

Gift of the Givers demanded Ramaphosa is being asked to investigate the Interior Ministry and the border authority for the “humiliation inflicted” on the Palestinians. The organization's founder, Imtiaz Sooliman, said this treatment included forcing them to wait for hours on the airport tarmac, denying them the food provided by the group, and using “all sorts of pretexts to prevent these passengers from disembarking.” South Africa has strongly criticized the Israeli military operation in Gaza. The country's sympathy for the Palestinian struggle for an independent state dates back years, particularly to the early 1990s when anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela pledged his support for the Palestinian cause. Since the beginning of the conflict, large marches in support of the Palestinians have been held in South Africa, as well as smaller rallies in support of Israel.

South Africa is home to the largest Jewish community in sub-Saharan Africa.

In 2023, the South African government filed a lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice, accusing the country of genocide in Gaza.

Israel strongly rejected this argument, calling it “unfounded.”

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