Report

Fractured Lives: Restrictions on Residency Rights and Family Reunification in Occupied Palestine

NRC|Published 15. Dec 2015
This report aims to detail the various laws, categories, and procedures Israel uses to compartmentalize Palestinian family life within the broader context of displacement in Occupied Palestine.

Despite the assertion of the right to family unity within human rights and international humanitarian law, Israel flouts this right and imposes a complex bureaucratic nightmare threatening family unification. 

Following a discussion of the normative framework for residency rights under international humanitarian and human rights law, the report details Israeli policies limiting residency in the West Bank and Gaza Strip before moving on to restrictions on residency rights in East Jerusalem. The report concludes with a brief comment on the role of the Palestinian Authority in dealing with family reunification and residency matters.

This report has been written by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), with support from the UK Department for International Development (DFID).