Interview: Recognition for Palestine state harms the rights of stateless Palestinians

Australia, Britain, Canada and France became the latest Western nations to recognise a Palestinian state last month, but the backing has cost Palestinians rights in other countries since they are no longer considered stateless, a legal expert said.

Patrícia Cabral, legal policy coordinator at the European Network on Statelessness, a civil society alliance, cited the examples of Bulgaria, Hungary and Norway, where Palestinians had seen their rights curtailed after statehood recognition.

Recognising a Palestinian state aims to pressure Israel to end its two-year assault on Gaza, which has killed more than 66,000 people, displaced 1.9 million and led to famine.

A UN Commission of Inquiry concluded in September that Israel had committed genocide in the narrow 40 km strip of land, an assessment rejected by Israel.

US President Donald Trump this week outlined a peace plan with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war, giving Palestinian militant group Hamas days to respond.

Cabral spoke to Context about the rights Palestinians should be afforded and the effect of recent political declarations.

What protections should Palestinians have as stateless people?

Most Palestinians, who don’t hold another nationality, should be considered stateless under international law. And that’s because Palestine does not have a nationality law.

It doesn’t have sovereign control over its borders, it doesn’t have the ability to issue identity and...

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