Nationality and Cases of Statelessness in the Middle East and North Africa define it, thereby implicitly deferring the question of definition to the 1954 Convention. The International Law Commission of the United Nations has also described the definition found in the 1954 Convention as customary international law,7 implying that it is to be upheld by all states regardless of whether they are a state party to this treaty or not. This means that in assessing the problem of statelessness in countries in the MENA region – even where they have not acceded to the 1954 Convention, as many have not – this definition forms the basis for such an assessment and is to be interpreted in light of the guidelines which have been developed for that purpose by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN agency formally mandated by the General Assembly to assist states to address statelessness.8 In determining whether a given person is stateless, it is important to consider both the content and the operation of relevant nationality law(s) – i.e. not just whether a person would appear to be a national in accordance with the letter of the law but also whether the person is considered as such by the 7 - International Law Commission, Articles on Diplomatic Protection with commentaries, 2006. 8 - Now collectively available as UNHCR, Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons, 2014. 16