ADVOCACY BRIEFING Palestinians and the search for protection as refugees and stateless persons in Europe July 2022 This briefing draws on the findings of a research collaboration between the European Network on Statelessness (ENS) and the Resource Centre for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights (BADIL). It summarises key issues facing Palestinians in their search for protection as refugees and stateless persons in Europe and makes a series of recommendations to relevant actors. For a comprehensive review of the issues and jurisprudence in this area and all references see the full report. Introduction There has been progress in recent years in some jurisdictions towards an increased awareness of refugeehood and statelessness among Palestinians. However, despite this limited progress, Palestinians continue to face discrimination due to inadequate legal frameworks or discriminatory practices, and remain unable to access protection in many European countries as refugees or stateless persons (or face lengthy legal battles to do so). There are divergent approaches taken as to whether they are considered stateless persons, and five key issues are evidenced through our research. Issue 1: Gaps in the international framework and mandates for the protection of Palestinians Approximately 9.1 million Palestinian refugees constitute the longest-persisting and largest refugee population in the world. Approximately five million people are ‘Palestine refugees’ eligible for services of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. UNRWA, the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine (UNCCP), and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have distinct mandates. UNCCP has a protection mandate, but the organisation has been largely dysfunctional since shortly after it was created in 1948. UNHCR’s mandate does not cover Palestinians who reside in UNRWA’s area of operation, and UNRWA’s mandate does not include seeking durable solutions for Palestine refugees. UNRWA registration does not bring any legal status, protective or otherwise, and should not be considered a form of identification or proof of nationality or statelessness. Although conditions vary to some extent from one field to another, Palestinians face significant discrimination in all UNRWA’s area of operation and other deprivation of human rights, including but not limited to: inadequate socio-economic conditions, restrictions on freedom of movement and property ownership, and in some cases, threats to life. These factors combine to mean that Palestinians in UNRWA’s area of operation do not have access to the same level of protection to which non-Palestinian refugees are generally entitled under the 1951 Refugee Convention. This disparity is not in line with the