Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber has withdrawn the 90-day visa exemption for Palestinian passport holders, following a probe into the recent mysterious arrival of charter flights carrying Palestinians.
An investigation got underway after more than 150 Palestinian refugees landed at OR Tambo International Airport without exit stamps in their passports. Most of them were initially denied entry but later allowed into the country under the care of Gift of the Givers, on 90-day visas.
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Schreiber withdrew the visa exemption after investigations by national intelligence structures and consultations within the Security Cluster, which flagged what the government describes as “systematic abuse of the exemption”.
According to the Department of Home Affairs, the short-stay visa, typically used to encourage tourism and brief travel, is believed to have been exploited.
“Rather than using ordinary commercial flights, entire airplanes were chartered not by the travellers themselves, but by intermediaries. Most passengers were given one-way tickets to South Africa and prohibited from bringing luggage with them, while only being allowed to carry US Dollars and essentials,” said Scheiber.
Schreiber added that authorities found that the travellers themselves did not arrange two recent charter flights, but by intermediaries. Many passengers reportedly arrived without proof of accommodation or onward travel in South Africa. Several were also found without departure verification in their passports.
Schreiber said investigations confirmed “the deliberate and ongoing abuse of the 90-day visa exemption for Palestinian ordinary passport holders,” adding that the travel arrangements amounted to “obvious abuse of the exemption by external actors for purposes other than its intended use”.
He further stated that the situation also constituted an abuse of the passengers themselves, noting that organisers were “apparently content to leave the travellers destitute upon their arrival in South Africa”.
Many of those who arrived indicated they did not wish to apply for asylum, leaving civil society organisations to take responsibility for their immediate welfare.
Schreiber warned that the flights were not intended to be once-off events, citing reports of further charter requests.
“Withdrawing the visa exemption is the most effective way to prevent further flights of this nature, while ensuring that bona fide travellers from Palestine are safely able to visit South Africa without being subjected to abuse. South Africa will not be complicit in any scheme to exploit or displace Palestinians from Gaza.”
The department said bona fide visa applications will continue to be processed, while asylum claims linked to the charter flights will be handled in line with South African law.
