South African Department of Home Affairs has revoked the 90‑day visa‑free entry previously granted to holders of ordinary Palestinian passports, citing evidence of systematic abuse of the provision.
According to the ministry, recent charter flights landed in South Africa carrying Palestinians evacuated from Gaza travellers arrived with one‑way tickets, little luggage, no confirmed return or onward flights, and no proper accommodation plans. The government says these flights were organised by intermediaries and appear to be part of a broader “forced‑migration” or relocation scheme rather than legitimate short stays.Home‑Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said the exemption’s withdrawal aims to prevent further exploitation while still allowing bona fide travellers to apply for visas under the normal process. The move reflects growing concern in Pretoria that the visa‑free policy was being misused to facilitate mass movements from a conflict zone under the cover of tourism or short visits, a situation critics warn could amount to complicity in forced displacement.
