---
title: "African countries should not entertain taking forcibly displaced Palestinians from Israel conflict zone"
description: "If Israel is indeed considering this option, African states cannot ignore the legal, humanitarian and political implications."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "ISS TODAY OP-ED"
author: "Aimée-Noël Mbiyozo for ISS TODAY"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/aimee-noel-mbiyozo-for-iss-today/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-01-11-african-countries-should-not-entertain-taking-forcibly-displaced-palestinians-from-israel-conflict-zone/"
published: "2024-01-11T13:45:04"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 1070
---

# African countries should not entertain taking forcibly displaced Palestinians from Israel conflict zone

> If Israel is indeed considering this option, African states cannot ignore the legal, humanitarian and political implications.

By Aimée-Noël Mbiyozo for ISS TODAY · Published 11 January 2024, 15:45 SAST

## Key points
- Israel has reportedly been in talks with various African nations, including Congo, Rwanda, and Chad, about potentially resettling Palestinians from Gaza, but these claims have been denied by the countries involved, and international condemnation has been swift, with even the United States expressing disapproval of the idea, highlighting the illegality of forcibly transferring civilians from an occupied territory.
- Israel reportedly held talks with Congo, Rwanda, and Chad about voluntary migration plans for Palestinians from Gaza, but all three countries have denied the existence of such talks.
- Several countries, including the US, have condemned calls for forced migration and reaffirmed that the transfer of civilians is against international humanitarian law.
- Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have expressed support for encouraging emigration as a solution, but finding countries willing to absorb Palestinians has been a challenge.
- Leaked papers suggest that Israel is trying to push Gazans into Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, but Egypt has resisted pressure to open its borders due to concerns about demographic changes and the elimination of prospects for Palestinian statehood.

## Content

In early January, media reports claimed Israel was in talks with “Congo” about “voluntary migration plans” for Palestinians from Gaza. The original [report](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-in-talks-with-congo-and-other-countries-on-gaza-voluntary-migration-plan/) in *Zman Yisrael* said ‘voluntary’ resettlement was slowly becoming official policy, and the Israeli coalition was meeting secretly with Congo and other nations on the issue. A security cabinet source said, “Congo will be willing to take in migrants, and we’re in talks with others”.

Israel-based *i24* later [reported](https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel-at-war/1704456007-israel-in-talks-with-chad-and-rwanda-to-welcome-palestinians-from-gaza-report) talks with Rwanda and Chad. It cited an unnamed official as saying Israel would exchange financial and military aid for resettling Palestinians, but warning, “We must move forward with this solution while paying close attention to international reactions that could interpret it as a forced transfer and not a voluntary migration. This is why we work closely with legal advisors”.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda and Chad have [denied](https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/rwanda-congo-deny-talks-with-israel-to-welcome-palestinian-migrants/3101667) secret talks with Israel. The Republic of the Congo hasn’t issued a public statement.

Israel [subsequently](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-denies-it-is-talking-to-other-countries-about-absorbing-gazan-immigrants/) denied talking to other states about absorbing displaced Gazans. Several countries, including the Netherlands, Germany, France and Saudi Arabia, have [condemned](http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/4/israels-war-on-gaza-list-of-key-events-day-90) calls for forced migration. Even the United States (US) government — a committed ally of Israel — issued a rare [statement](https://www.state.gov/rejection-of-irresponsible-statements-on-resettlement-of-palestinians-outside-of-gaza/) rejecting “irresponsible statements” from Israeli ministers, saying they didn’t reflect the policy of the Israeli government or prime minister.

The forcible [transfer](https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/en/customary-ihl/v1/rule129) of civilians of an occupied territory, in whole or in part, is against international humanitarian law. As of 6 January, 1.88 million Palestinians (85% of the population) were [displaced](https://www.unrwa.org/resources/reports/unrwa-situation-report-61-situation-gaza-strip-and-west-bank-including-east-Jerusalem) across the Gaza Strip due to Israel’s ongoing military aggression that has killed 22,835 Palestinians since 7 October 2023.

Plans to push large numbers of Palestinians into distant countries that satisfy the test of ‘voluntariness’ in the context of military occupation and months of bombardment are unrealistic and unlikely. But it’s concerning that Israel is pursuing these conversations to gauge public and political responses. Many officials across multiple parties have made remarks that serve a dangerous normalising function.

#### **‘Encouraging emigration’**

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir [rejected](https://www.timesofisrael.com/smotrich-doubles-down-on-resettlement-of-gazans-rejecting-us-criticism/) the US’s condemnation, saying: “The United States is our best friend, but first of all we will do what is best for the State of Israel: the migration of hundreds of thousands from Gaza will allow the residents of the \[Gaza\] envelope to return home and live in security and will protect the IDF soldiers”.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich repeated calls to resettle Gazans, claiming that “more than 70% of the Israeli public today supports encouraging emigration as a humanitarian solution”.

Far from a fringe view, members of the leading Likud party have made similar calls. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly told a Likud meeting that he was working to facilitate Gazans’ voluntary migration to other countries but is struggling to find states willing to absorb them. Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter claimed, “We are now rolling out the Gaza Nakba,” referring to the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians between 1947 and 1949 that displaced approximately 750,000 people.

Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel told reporters, ”Voluntary migration is the best and most realistic programme for the day after the fighting ends”. In November 2023, Danny Danon (Likud) and Ram Ben-Barak (Yesh Atid) jointly published a *Wall Street Journal*[article](https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-west-should-welcome-gaza-refugees-asylum-seekers-hamas-terrorism-displacement-5d2b5890#cxrecs_s) calling for the West to welcome Gaza refugees.

Sustained efforts to drive Gazans south towards the Egyptian border and leaked [papers](https://www.scribd.com/document/681086738/Israeli-Intelligence-Ministry-Policy-Paper-on-Gaza-s-Civilian-Population-October-2023) indicate that Israel is again trying to push Gazans into Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Reports claim that Israel has offered to write off Egyptian [debt](https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/israel-latest-weapon-palestine-egypt-debt-gaza/) and that Netanyahu has lobbied European leaders to help him pressure President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to absorb refugees.

**Read more in Daily Maverick:**[Middle East crisis news hub](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/middle-east-crisis-news-hub/)

Egypt and other Arab countries have withstood the pressure to open their borders, partly out of fears that Israel could use the war to force demographic changes and eliminate prospects of Palestinian statehood. Despite wanting to maintain diplomatic relations with Israel, el-Sisi [said](https://apnews.com/article/palestinian-jordan-egypt-israel-refugee-502c06d004767d4b64848d878b66bd3d) the war wasn’t just aimed at fighting Hamas, but was “also an attempt to push the civilian inhabitants to … migrate to Egypt” with the intent to “eliminate the Palestinian cause … the most important cause of our region”.

Mass displacement has been a central theme of Israeli-Palestinian history. Israel has refused to allow Palestinians who fled previous wars to return. Almost six million refugees and their descendants remain in other countries — many stateless.

Egyptians, like most Africans, have broad solidarity with the Palestinian cause. Any decision viewed as entrenching Israeli occupation would face public and political backlash. Egypt also has concerns about terrorists moving with Gazan civilians, and the country becoming a base for attacks on Israel.

Israel has secretly implemented a deportation plan for African migrants before. Between 2014 and 2017, Israel brokered a partnership with Rwanda and Uganda to accept asylum seekers who agreed to ‘voluntary’ transfer. Rwanda and Uganda have [denied](https://www.timesofisrael.com/rwanda-denies-secret-deal-to-accept-asylum-seekers-deported-by-israel/) this. But [reports](https://www.refworld.org/docid/55ee8c3a4.html) show that thousands of Africans were promised travel documents, cash and visas if they agreed to leave Israel for ‘third countries’. The plan was eventually abandoned after the asylum seekers were denied documentation, blocked from claiming asylum and coerced into leaving Israel.

#### **Displacement threat**

Given the humanitarian and political implications, discussions between states about mass displacement would likely remain clandestine and outside public scrutiny.

Democratic countries and regional blocs such as Italy or the European Union, have previously secured migration cooperation under questionable circumstances. These include co-opting Libyan militia and [partnering](https://issafrica.org/iss-today/africa-europe-migration-deals-cost-lives-and-undercut-democracy) with Tunisian President Kais Saied in exchange for ‘managing’ boat departures to Europe. Both deals included giving cash to controversial leaders and have undermined democracy and the rule of law.

Concerns would also arise if deals included military aid. Israel is the world’s 10th largest arms [exporter](http://www.statista.com/statistics/267131/market-share-of-the-leadings-exporters-of-conventional-weapons/). It hasn’t ratified the Arms Trade Treaty and is [accused](https://theconversation.com/the-harvard-of-anti-terrorism-how-israels-military-industrial-complex-feeds-the-global-arms-trade-204758) of providing arms and surveillance to regimes with poor human rights records, including during the Rwandan genocide, the South Sudanese civil war and apartheid South Africa.

The current appetite for weapons or cash injections could be high in some quarters. In 2022, Rwanda agreed to a widely [criticised](http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/nov/15/supreme-court-rejects-rishi-sunak-plan-to-deport-asylum-seekers-to-rwanda) deal to accept asylum seekers from the United Kingdom (UK), which was subsequently blocked by the UK Supreme Court.

Hopefully, the trial balloon of forcibly displacing Palestinians into Africa has returned an overwhelming response and been quashed. We must remain vigilant about anything that suggests otherwise.**DM**

*Aimée-Noël Mbiyozo, Senior Research Consultant, Institute for Security Studies (ISS).*

*First published by*[*ISS Today*](https://issafrica.org/iss-today)*.*