Gazan victims recount ordeal in secret Israeli-linked exodus to South Africa

Palestinians who recently left Gaza through a little-known evacuation pipeline linked to an Israeli war ministry office say they were transported out of the war-torn territory with almost no information, documentation, or understanding of where they were being taken, according to accounts reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Nineteen-year-old Shahd Abu Samra said her journey began with a brief text message directing her to meet at 5 a.m. outside a fish restaurant in Rafah. The message provided no explanation.

“I didn’t know where I was going,” she told the Journal. “I was just desperate to leave and continue my studies.”

Abu Samra was one of more than 150 Palestinians who later found themselves on a flight to South Africa—part of a series of secretive departures organized through al-Majd Europe, an organization the Journal reported has no verifiable office, registration, or physical presence despite claiming to operate from Germany and East al-Quds.

Its website lists no address or phone number and accepts donations only in cryptocurrency.

Passengers said they had responded to al-Majd’s online ads promising a path out of Gaza. Some paid nothing, while others were instructed to pay between $1,400 and nearly $3,000 in Tether at a money-transfer office in central Gaza.

After registering, they were added to WhatsApp groups and later instructed where to assemble.

Travelers recounted being taken by bus through the Kerem Shalom crossing, under Israeli control, before boarding a plane at Israel’s Ramon Airport.

Passports were later returned without Israeli exit stamps, leaving the group unable to offer authorities in South Africa any proof of legal departure, according to the Journal.

“It felt like we were being moved without explanation,” one traveler told the newspaper. “No one told us why we were going through Israel or what country we were heading to.”

Passengers said they did not learn their final destination—Johannesburg—until they received boarding passes during a connection in Nairobi.

When the flight arrived in South Africa, authorities held the group on the aircraft for hours as officials tried to determine why more than 150 Palestinians had arrived without clear travel documents or stated plans.

Aid group Gift of the Givers, now caring for more than 200 evacuees from recent flights, said most arrived with only the clothes they were wearing. Many intend to apply for asylum.

The Journal reported that al-Majd is connected to Israel’s so-called voluntary migration administration, a war ministry office established earlier this year. Israeli officials have said they recently eased screening for Palestinians seeking to leave Gaza.

For those who traveled on the flights, the lack of transparency remains the defining feature of the experience. “We had no information,” Abu Samra said. “We just followed the instructions because it was the only way out.”

On Monday, South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said his country has opened an official investigation into the unexpected arrival of over 150 Palestinians in Johannesburg.  

During a press conference, Lamola expressed concerns about the flight, warning that it may be part of a “broader Israeli agenda” to relocate Palestinians forcibly to various countries. 

“It’s a clearly orchestrated operation because they are not only being sent to South Africa. There are other countries where such flights have been sent,” he said. “We are suspicious about the circumstances of the plane’s arrival, and it is an issue of concern that is under investigation.”

Lamola further stated that authorities are actively working to establish how the passengers managed to board without the necessary permits or departure stamps, stressing that a comprehensive outcome would be made public once investigations conclude.

He also noted that Pretoria does not want any more of these flights to arrive, asserting that the situation is indicative of “a clear agenda to cleanse out the Palestinians out of Gaza and the West Bank.”

Israel used shadowy NGO to 'traffic' Palestinians from Gaza, activists find

South Africa says it is investigates mystery of a plane that arrived with more than 150 Palestinians from Gaza

According to Haaretz, al-Majd has also organized flights to Indonesia, and Malaysia, collaborating with Israeli officials on "voluntary immigration" plans, which had previously included discussions about relocating Palestinians to other countries, including South Sudan. 

The Palestinian Embassy in South Africa strongly criticized the operation, labeling it as an unregistered and misleading organization that took advantage of the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. 

The embassy further accused the operation of deceiving families and facilitating “irregular and irresponsible travel.”

It also urged Palestinians to avoid “human trafficking networks, blood merchants, and displacement agents,” warning against involvement with such entities. 

Pretoria, a longstanding advocate for Palestinian rights, took a significant step by initiating a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2023.

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