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The European Union on Tuesday restated its position against any demographic or territorial alterations in the Gaza Strip, following reports that dozens of Palestinians recently arrived in South Africa on chartered flights arranged from Gaza.
South Africa last week granted a 90-day visa exemption to 153 Palestinians who had arrived from Kenya seeking asylum.
The group was initially denied entry due to missing travel documents and the lack of customary departure stamps in their passports.
South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said Monday that the flight arriving in Johannesburg appeared to be a “clearly orchestrated operation” aimed at displacing Palestinians.
According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, an association run by a man with dual Israeli-Estonian citizenship has been selling seats on chartered flights for Palestinians in Gaza to travel to distant destinations such as Indonesia, Malaysia and South Africa for around $2,000.
Israel has previously discussed the possibility of relocating Palestinians to several countries, including South Sudan.
EU Commission spokesperson Anouar El Anouni told reporters in Brussels that he was not aware of the reports about the flights but underscored that the EU’s position “remains unchanged.”
“The EU rejects any attempts at demographic or territorial changes in the Gaza Strip, and we support unifying the Gaza Strip with the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority,” he said.
El Anouni also cited remarks by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, noting her position that Gaza is an “essential part of the future Palestinian state” and that there should be no further forced displacement.
Another spokesperson, Paula Pinho, said the situation would be reviewed further.
“I’ve seen some reports already this morning about it. We need to look further into it. I’m not sure if it was about forced displacement or voluntary displacement,” she said.
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