Summary

By the end of 2002, there were estimated to be 50,000 Palestinians in Egypt (USRC 2002). They had arrived in Egypt over several decades, and fear and occupation of their lands and properties had prevented them from going back to Palestine. In addition to reasons connected with the war and the geographical proximity of Egypt and Palestine, social and professional ties have also brought Palestinians to seek shelter in Egyptian cities and towns.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency did not serve the Palestinians in Egypt, as it did the Palestinians in Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. Assistance was at first provided by the Egyptian government’s High Committee for Palestinian Immigrants. Later, as Nasser became president, Palestinians were treated on a par with Egyptians. Until the late 1970s they enjoyed the national protection of the Egyptian state.

As time went on, political events as well as the stance taken at both Egyptian and Palestinian political levels concerning the peace process affected the treatment of Palestinians in Egypt. From the early 1980s Palestinians were treated as foreigners. Despite the fact that Palestinians come under the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), until recently no protection or assistance was provided to them.