South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said on Monday that the arrival of a plane carrying Palestinian refugees in Johannesburg last week was “clearly an orchestrated operation” to evict the Palestinians, Anadolu news agency reported on Tuesday.
Lamola told reporters at a news conference that the flight appeared to be part of a “broader plan” to relocate Palestinians from Palestine to multiple countries.
“This is clearly an organized operation because they are not just being sent to South Africa. There are other countries where such flights are being sent,” he said.
He said the government was “suspicious” about the circumstances surrounding the plane’s arrival and that “matters of concern” were being investigated.
“We do not want to operate any more aircraft because this is clearly for the purpose of clearing Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank,” he said.
Lamola said that currently available information indicates that the passenger did not have the necessary permits, but that the matter is under investigation and authorities will determine the full facts and a comprehensive outcome is expected.
Last Thursday, South Africa granted 90-day visa exemptions to 153 Palestinians who arrived from Kenya seeking asylum, but they were initially denied entry because their passports lacked travel documents and customary exit stamps.
According to the Israeli daily Haaretz, an organization run by a dual Israeli and Estonian citizen is selling seats for about $2,000 to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on charter flights to countries as far away as Indonesia, Malaysia and South Africa.
Israel had previously discussed the possibility of relocating Palestinians with several countries, including South Sudan.