Shadowy chartered plane with 153 Palestinians at JKIA raises eyebrows

On Thursday, a chartered plane carrying 153 Palestinians from Gaza touched down at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) before the passengers were transferred to another aircraft to South Africa.

While details about the first plane remain unclear, the second flight, which landed at OR Tambo International Airport, was operated by Lift Global Airways.

The transfer has kicked up a storm in South Africa, which has voiced strong support for the Palestinian cause. President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for a probe into the passengers’ arrival amid growing unease over the possible repatriation of Palestinians from Gaza, as the region continues to grapple with violent conflict with Israel.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed concern over the unexpected stop in Kenya of 153 Palestinians from Gaza, saying: “These are people from Gaza who somehow mysteriously were put on a plane that passed by Nairobi and came here.”

He added that, despite lacking proper documents, “these are people from a war-torn country and out of compassion and empathy, we must receive them and address the situation they are facing.”

The unscheduled stop at Nairobi’s JKIA is expected to spark a diplomatic debate between Kenya and South Africa, placing Kenya in the spotlight as a transit point in the controversial transfer.

Israel has previously suggested resettling Palestinians displaced by the ongoing Gaza conflict in some African countries. South Africa, which has a frosty relationship with Israel, formally filed a case against Tel Aviv at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on December 29, 2023, accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza in violation of the 1948 Genocide Convention, a treaty both nations have signed.

The move further strained already tense diplomatic ties and drew in the United States, which supports Israel in the Gaza conflict. Relations between Israel and South Africa have been uneasy since the Apartheid era.

Regarding the recent Palestinian stopover at JKIA, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi said the government was still seeking clarification from relevant agencies at the time of going to press.

The Prime Cabinet Secretary’s office said any plane travelling from Palestine to Nairobi and onward to South Africa would have required clearance along its entire route. 

“The plane could not travel all that distance blindly. There must have been clearance through the different jurisdictions of the flight path,” Jacob Ng’etich, the Director of Press Service.  He added that the office was in liaising with relevant authorities to establish details of the flight.

Seeking clarification

Key questions remain unanswered: Which chartered plane landed the refugees at JKIA? Who owns it, who financed the trip and was the state aware of the plan?

The 153 Palestinians had been evacuated from Gaza and flown to Kenya from Ramon Airport in Israel. Upon Arrival in South Africa, they were refused entry at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg and kept on board for more than 10 hours as their passports lacked standard departure stamps.

The incident adds to diplomatic tensions, highlighting Kenya’s role as a transit point in a highly sensitive transfer of Gaza refugees.

Upon arrival in South Africa, the 153 Palestinian passengers were processed through immigration. “During the process, officials noticed the absence of departure stamps in some passports and that several travellers lacked return tickets or addresses for accommodation,” said South Africa’s Minister for Home Affairs, Dr. L. A. Schreiber. He added that these omissions did not indicate the travellers were seeking asylum.

Aviation experts say the plane was chartered from a company based in Romania and was not a scheduled flight. Before such a charter, the flight must be filed in the country of origin and cleared through all airspaces on its route. If Nairobi is a stopover, authorisation must be granted by Kenyan authorities. The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) oversees aviation matters, while the Kenya Airports Authority manages any aircraft landing on Kenyan soil.

Both Israel and Palestine maintain embassies in Kenya, underscoring the country’s role as a potential transit point amid a sensitive and complex regional situation.

Calls to the Palestinian Authority’s Ambassador to Kenya, Hazem Mohammed, went unanswered. Kenya recognized Palestine as a state in May 1989, while diplomatic ties with Israel were established in December 1963. The government has consistently supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In July, Mudavadi reaffirmed that Kenya’s position is enshrined in law through the 2025 Sessional Paper passed by Parliament. However, late last year, Kenya faced criticism within diplomatic circles for allegedly abandoning Palestine by abstaining from a UN resolution demanding Israel end its “unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory” within 12 months. The resolution, passed during the General Assembly’s 10th emergency special session, received 124 votes in favour, 14 against and 43 abstentions.

Attempts to reach the Israeli embassy for comment were unsuccessful, as officials said they were observing the Shabbat holiday and would only respond on Monday.

KAA Managing Director Mohammed Gedi said: “The role of clearing an aircraft to land, take off or even enter Kenyan airspace is mandated to KCAA. I cannot comment on their work. Please contact them for a comprehensive briefing on the matter.”

Emle Arao, the Director General of KCAA, neither answered calls nor responded to text messages seeking comment.

According to the Associated Press, the Palestinian embassy in South Africa said the flight was arranged by “an unregistered and misleading organization that exploited the tragic humanitarian conditions of our people in Gaza, deceived families, collected money from them and facilitated their travel in an irregular and irresponsible manner. This entity later attempted to disown any responsibility once complications arose.”

The statement did not name the charterer, but an Israeli military official, speaking anonymously due to the sensitive nature of the information, said an organization called Al-Majd arranged the transport of about 150 Palestinians from Gaza to South Africa.

The official said Israel escorted buses organised by Al-Majd that transported Palestinians from a meeting point in the Gaza Strip to the Kerem Shalom crossing. From there, Al-Majd’s buses took them to Ramon Airport in Israel, where they were flown out of the country.

Accommodation 

South African authorities reported that 23 Palestinians had traveled onward to other countries, though they did not name them. The remaining 130 were allowed entry following intervention by South Africa’s Ministry of Home Affairs and an offer from the NGO Gift of the Givers to accommodate them.

Speaking to local media, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, founder of Gift of the Givers, said the plane that brought the Palestinians to South Africa is operated by a South African company.

“Global Aviation manages an airline called Lift Airline in South Africa. It appears to be the same company that brought the first plane with Palestinian refugees to South Africa on October 28. We do not know the relationship between this company and Israel,” he said.Dr Sooliman criticized Israel for allegedly displacing Palestinians from their homes in Gaza.

“This is forced migration, taking advantage of people traumatized by two years of genocide, starvation, hunger, and lack of medical support, with family members scattered across the world. People are desperate,” he added.

The controversial plan to repatriate Palestinians from Gaza gained attention this year under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Approved by Israel’s security cabinet, the proposal aimed to allow a “voluntary transfer” of Gaza residents to other countries.