TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Flights managed by the Israeli organization flying about 150 Palestinians from Gaza took everyone by surprise when they landed in South Africa in November 2025.
That was not the only flight. Since May 2025, at least three flights full of Gaza residents who had registered to leave the war-torn area have landed in Indonesia and South Africa.
An Israeli group that firmly supports U.S. President Donald Trump's proposal to expel and relocate Palestinians from Gaza is behind these flights, according to an investigation by the AP as quoted by Seattle PI on Sunday.
This raises further questions about the motive behind the transfer of hundreds of Palestinians from Gaza.
At the time, South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola referred to the flights as a "clear agenda to cleanse out the Palestinians out of Gaza and the West Bank."
Ad Kan, an Israeli organization founded by army and former intelligence officers, worked through other companies to distance itself from its relationship with Israel and arrange the flights, according to a contract, passenger list, text messages, financial reports, and interviews with more than two dozen Israeli, Palestinian, and others involved in the journey.
Some passengers, who fled after more than two years of devastating genocide that had destroyed much of Gaza, said they had no knowledge about who was behind the trip.
Humanitarian Claims
The evacuation was organized through a company named Al-Majd, which on its website describes itself as a humanitarian organization "supporting Palestinian lives" and provides assistance to Muslim communities in conflict.
But looking at Ad Kan's history and its founder, Gilad Ach, shows that the Israeli group may be driven, at least in part, by a different agenda.
After Trump proposed last year to expel two million Palestinians from Gaza, Gilad Ach—an Israeli reserve soldier—published a report detailing how he would implement "voluntary exit."
After the war began in 2023, Ach founded a group called The Israeli Reservists Generation of Victory. His group spread ads on buses in Israel featuring a portrait of Trump alongside Hebrew words: “Victory = Voluntary migration … This bus could be full of Gazans. Listen to Trump, let them out!”
Ach denied an interview with the AP news agency, but said in a text message that his organization advocates for the rights of Palestinians in Gaza who hope to leave to safer parts of the world, free from Hamas.
He denied South Africa's allegations that the flights were meant to rid Gaza and the West Bank of Palestinians, which constitutes a war crime.
Critics say that emigration from Gaza is not voluntary after Israeli genocide made much of the Gaza Strip uninhabitable. International human rights groups also warned that Palestinians leaving should be allowed to return, and Israel has a decades-long track record of making it difficult for Palestinians to return to Gaza.
How Did the Flights Happen?
Citing New Arab, an AP interview with six of the Palestinians on these flights revealed that the passengers first heard of this organization in early 2025. Some saw ads online or on social media or were directed to the Al-Majd website through friends.
Months before the flight landed in Johannesburg last November, a previous flight in May brought nearly 60 Palestinians from Israel through Hungary to Indonesia and several other locations.
The second flight, in October, brought about 170 people from Israel to South Africa through Kenya, according to people who helped arrange the flights, flight tracking information, and Palestinians using the service.
The six Palestinians who spoke to AP said they paid up to US$2,000 per person through bank transfers and cryptocurrency.
They said the website indicated that they would be taken to South Africa, Indonesia, or Malaysia, but it did not provide an option to choose.
Leaving Gaza
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and COGAT, the defense body that facilitates the departure of Palestinians leaving Gaza, refused to comment on the flights.
The Netanyahu office, COGAT, and Ach also declined to answer whether the fleeing Palestinians would be allowed to return.
In March last year, the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that there were no plans or discussions with anyone regarding the relocation of Gaza residents to Indonesia.
This statement was made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Rolliansyah Soemirat in response to reports by several Israeli media outlets claiming a scheme to relocate Palestinian refugees to Indonesia.
Soemirat vehemently denied the reports. "The Indonesian government has never discussed with anyone or heard any information about plans to relocate Gaza residents to Indonesia as reported by a few foreign media," he said in an official statement on Thursday, March 27, 2025.
"We can confirm that there have been no discussions or agreements between Indonesia and any party regarding this matter." This statement also clarifies recent speculation.
Olivia Subandi contributed to this article.
Read: Israel Seeks to Deploy Gaza Stabilization Force in May, Media Reports
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