Johannesburg – President Cyril Ramaphosa says the government accepted 150 Palestinians who arrived at OR Tambo International Airport without proper documentation out of “compassion, empathy and humanitarianism”.
A charter flight from Kenya brought 153 travellers, who initially lacked accommodation details, stay information and departure stamps.
The Border Management Authority (BMA) denied them entry at first because none had applied for asylum.
After verification and an intervention by humanitarian group Gift of the Givers — which offered to accommodate them — officials allowed the group in.
Twenty-three have since moved on, while 130 remain under the organisation’s care and must comply with normal entry requirements.
Ramaphosa, speaking during a clean-up campaign in Johannesburg on Friday, said South Africa could not turn away people fleeing a war zone.
“We cannot turn them back, even though they do not have the necessary documents and papers,” the president told Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber.
“These are people from a strife-torn, a war-torn country, and out of compassion and empathy, we must receive them.”
We are providing support and processing the 160 Palestinian refugees who arrived at OR Tambo International Airport on humanitarian grounds, ensuring that our response is rooted in compassion and empathy. pic.twitter.com/pKXNBaYwEh
— Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) November 14, 2025
He confirmed that Home Affairs, the BMA and International Relations are fully involved in processing the arrivals and investigating the origins of the charter flight.
“This one we did because it was different and a special case of people who are supported as a country. People who have been put under a great deal of suffering and stress,” Ramaphosa said.
He added: “Ordinarily, we would have said they should go back because they didn’t have any documentation, but out of empathy, out of compassion, and because they are a people that we as South Africa have raised our hands to support, we felt that we should accept them and process them.”
The Embassy of Palestine welcomed the “sovereign and human decision,” adding that the travellers were misled by an unregistered organisation that exploited families in Gaza.
“The Embassy highly appreciates the sovereign and human decision of the Government of South Africa to grant 90-day entry visas for the Palestinian passengers. This is a mere reflection of South Africa’s long-standing principled support for the Palestinian people,” it said in a statement.
NGOs, including Gift of the Givers, will continue providing humanitarian support.
The government will update the public once processing is complete.
The Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’ October 2023 attack on Israel, has reportedly killed more than 60,000 people.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
