‘Highly unusual’ US deportation sees Palestinians flown to West Bank on Israeli billionaire’s jet

The United States has deported eight Palestinians to the Israeli-occupied West Bank aboard a private jet, in what security officials are calling a “highly unusual” operation, according to Haaretz.

The eight individuals, whose identities remain undisclosed, reportedly arrived in Israel on Wednesday on a Gulfstream IV jet allegedly chartered by US authorities. The aircraft is believed to belong to an Israeli-American businessman with close ties to US President Donald Trump, including joint real estate ventures.

Unlike standard deportation protocols, which typically involve commercial flights, this case involved direct coordination between US and Israeli authorities. The deportees, accused of remaining in the US without valid residency permits, were transferred upon arrival to Israel Prison Service officers, accompanied by officials from Israel’s Foreign Ministry. 

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The deportees were driven to a military checkpoint near the illegal Israeli settlement of Modi’in Illit. There, they were handed over to the Israeli Civil Administration and released into the West Bank.

Sources cited by Haaretz say the deportation followed a rare request from Washington to Tel Aviv. Israel’s internal security agency, the Shin Bet, reportedly approved the operation after determining the individuals had no security background.

Footage obtained by Haaretz showed one of the deportees descending the aircraft stairs in handcuffs, surrounded by Israeli security officers. The flight reportedly made stopovers in Ireland and Bulgaria for refuelling.

The estimated cost of the chartered round-trip flight—based on commercial rates of $15,000 per hour—is around $300,000, raising questions over the motivations and urgency behind the use of a private aircraft.

Neither Israel’s Foreign Ministry nor the US Embassy in Tel Aviv has commented on the incident.

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