UK
Arab-Israeli granted UK asylum due to ‘risk of persecution’ in ‘genocidal’ Israel
The 26-year-old’s legal team claimed that he would risk his safety by returning to ‘apartheid’ in the Jewish state
January 14, 2026 13:23
The 26-year-old’s legal team claimed that he would risk his safety by returning to ‘apartheid’ in the Jewish state
January 14, 2026 13:23An Arab-Israeli activist has been granted asylum in the UK after arguing that he would face “persecution” if he returned to "genocidal, apartheid" Israel.
The 26-year-old Israeli citizen, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has been living in the UK since he was a baby, and applied for asylum on the basis that, if he were forced to go back to his country of birth, he would be persecuted for his involvement in pro-Palestinian demonstrations in Britain.
The man had been trying secure asylum for several years. In 2024, after his application was refused, he was told he could instead be granted refugee status.
However, this option was then withdrawn after an intervention by then-Home Secretary James Cleverly.
Ultimately, after a judicial review brought about by the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI), the decision not to grant the man asylum was reversed by an immigration tribunal last month.
The ruling also prevents the Home Office from lodging an appeal against the decision.
The man told The Guardian: "I was a baby when I came to the UK and I’ve lived here all my life, but the Home Office’s cruel actions have kept me in precarity for decades, while friends and family build their careers, relationships and lives
"I claimed asylum nearly seven years ago, and all that time I’ve been denied the right to work, study or rent. I’ve also been living under the threat of removal from my community and home to Israel, a genocidal, apartheid regime that persecutes Palestinians. The British government can no longer deny this."
Per the same report, the Home Office subsequently wrote to the applicant, saying: "We accept you have a well-founded fear of persecution and therefore cannot return to your country, Israel."
Taher Gulamhussein, the man's lawyer at JCWI, told the paper that the group is pleased that he can "finally get on with his life in safety" and also accused the Home Office of "wasting public money" in its attempts to deny asylum.
The Home Office declined to comment on individual immigration cases.
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