Reuters has reported, citing three unnamed sources, that South Sudan and Israel are in talks over a plan to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. According to the sources, no agreement has been finalized yet, but negotiations between the two sides are ongoing.
The proposed plan, if implemented, would involve relocating residents from Gaza in line with the vision of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes—and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Netanyahu reiterated this week his stance that Palestinians should voluntarily leave the Gaza Strip.
The relocation plan, which Israel is pushing with U.S. backing, has been met with widespread international rejection, especially from Palestinians and Arab nations. Palestinians have described the proposal as a second Nakba (catastrophe).
On Thursday, the British Telegraph newspaper reported that the South Sudanese government had agreed to accept Palestinians from Gaza at Israel’s request.
According to the paper, a South Sudanese foreign ministry official confirmed that the government had approved the request.
Meanwhile, the U.S. would lift sanctions on South Sudan, and Israel is expected to invest in the country’s health and education sectors.
Reuters also reported that the idea of relocating and resettling Palestinians in South Sudan was raised during meetings between Israeli officials and South Sudan’s Foreign Minister, Monday Semaya Kumba, during his visit to Israel last month.
However, this account appears to contradict a statement from South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which on Wednesday denied earlier reports about the plan, calling them “baseless.” This came in response to an Associated Press report published Tuesday that cited six informed sources claiming such discussions had taken place between Juba and Tel Aviv.