IV. V. and “was not, at the time of birth, entitled to acquire foreign nationality by virtue of his parentage”, meaning women can confer nationality if the child was not entitled at the time of their birth to acquire the nationality of a foreign father. Article 7 stipulates that nationality may be granted to the adult children of a naturalized father. There is no equivalent right for the children of naturalized women. Article 8 of the 1969 Nationality Act further discriminates against Syrian women by denying them the right to transfer nationality to their noncitizen spouse on an equal basis with Syrian men. 9. Syrian law lacks a definition of a stateless person, and accordingly, there are no specific procedures, laws or protection mechanisms tailored to the protection of the rights of stateless individuals, other than for some Palestinian refugees in Syria. Access to Syrian nationality to Palestinian refugees living in Syria has been historically denied. Since the outbreak of the Syrian conflict in 2011, widespread displacement has further exposed the fragility of this status, with many Palestinians facing heightened protection risks and falling within gaps between institutional mandates and legal frameworks (see the section on Palestinians below). 10. Syria’s 1969 Nationality Act contains some safeguards against statelessness at birth in which a child born in Syria to stateless parents, or a child born in Syria who does not acquire another nationality should be considered Syrian (Articles 3(c) and 3(d)).13 In practice, however, these provisions have not always been applied, especially in the case of stateless Kurds and Palestinians where statelessness is inherited across multiple generations. This increases the risk of statelessness for individuals within Syria, particularly for children born to unknown or stateless fathers,14 or those who have been internally displaced by the conflict. Crucially, the 1969 Act lacks protective mechanisms for conflict-affected cohorts. Its narrow safeguards strictly require an 'unknown father,' actively excluding children of the enforcedly disappeared and missing persons—both Syrian and Palestinian—where paternity is known but legally unprovable due to the father's absence and lack of civil documentation. Moreover, the fact that the safeguard against statelessness for children is limited to those born inside Syria, increases the risk of statelessness for Syrian refugees.15 11. The Constitutional Declaration of the Syrian Arab Republic, presently serving as the interim constitution during the five-year transitional period (2025-2030), enshrines: ● ● Citizens are equal before the law in rights and duties, without discrimination based on race, religion, gender or lineage (Article 10) The State shall protect human rights and fundamental freedoms, and guarantee the rights 13 Article 3(C) and 3(D) state, respectively, that the following people shall be considered Syrian: “Anyone born in the country to unknown parents or to parents of unknown nationality or without one. A foundling in the country is considered to be born there and in the place where he was found, unless proven otherwise”; and “A person who was born in the country and was not entitled, at the time of his birth, to acquire a foreign nationality by filiation”. Nationality Law, Legislative Decree 276, 1969, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4d81e7b12.html. Arabic version available at: http://www.casi.gov.sy/node15/arabic/eindex.php?node=5518&cat=14816&nid=14816&print=1. 14 European Network on Statelessness and Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion, “Statelessness in Syria,” August 2019, available at: https://statelessjourneys.org/wp-content/uploads/StatelessJourneys-Syria-August-2019.pdf. 15 UNHCR, “Background Note on Gender Equality, Nationality Laws and Statelessness 2019,” 8 March 2019, at 7, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5c8120847.html. 3