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I don't really know where to put this question and as it is somewhat a political decision I will ask it here.

Based on this Wikipedia Article it seems like one can't really leave the Gaza strip. But all these articles are about "freedom of movement" and traveling between Israel and the Gaza strip for medical help.

Assume that I am living in the Gaza strip. Assume further that I would want to flee from there due to the warlike situation. Would (especially) Israel/ Egypt/Jordan grant me asylum due to my situation? Could I get a regular citizenship in Israel if I am willing to never return to the Gaza strip?

Would Israel accept something like that? I didn't find anything on this topic - only on the topic of traveling between those places.

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    Given that it's in Israel's best interest for there to be fewer Palestinians, I'd be surprised if they didn't let people up and leave.
    – TenthJustice
    Sep 17, 2014 at 13:23
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    I would think that way too! But I couldn't find any (reliable) sources on this topic. As a palestine you could improve your Standard of Living dramatically as Israel is a highly advanced country. And Israel would profit by having a good image, reduction of people that are potentially against them and a good integration of following generations.
    – Haini
    Sep 17, 2014 at 13:52
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    No, you can't enter Israel from Gaza now that Gaza is no longer part of Israel (unless you have the proper documentation, which is difficult for non-Jews, especially Arabs, to get). You can't enter Egypt or any other country either, just like you can't just come from any country to the US. Unfortunately, international law does force countries to accept "refugees," but don't think that people will cheerfully give you citizenship for "promising that you won't return to Gaza."
    – Shahar
    Sep 17, 2014 at 14:32
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    @Haini Are you asking practically or legally under some country's law? If you got out of Gaza you may be able to flee to another country that would grant asylum (almost certainly NOT Egypt, Israel, or Jordan), but neither Egypt nor Israel AFAIK have a mechanism in place to allow Gazans to leave for non-medical reasons.
    – Publius
    Sep 18, 2014 at 16:47
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    @haini maybe there is a way to do it but I don't know what that would be. Getting out of Gaza requires going through Israel, Egypt, or the blockade, which block movement but in extenuating circumstances.
    – Publius
    Sep 22, 2014 at 1:26

2 Answers 2

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+200

This article cites a Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) study that deals with the West Bank and Gaza emigration:

about 7,000 people leave the West Bank and Gaza every year, mostly for economic opportunities rather than to escape the conflict with Israel, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS).

The study was done in conjunction with MEDSTAT, a European Union project aiding Mediterranean countries with statistical research. It was paid for by the Palestinian Authority. Some 15,000 households were questioned in face to face interviews, including 5,000 in the Gaza Strip.

So, there is clearly a way for these 7000 people / year to leave those areas, it this figure is accurate.

However, the article does not deal with how they manage to emigrate. This article dives into more details about this:

Gaza’s younger and educated population is leaving the Strip in search of a better future in Europe while risking their lives in a dangerous journey running through Africa’s countries.

The same article only mentions Belgium as a country that is accepting these immigrants:

(..) Belgium, where a large community of over 22,000 Gazans is rapidly forming. (..) Obtaining the proper papers in Belgium is also a tedious process,

This confirms that Israel is not a destination country and this is also confirmed by this Quora answer that says that receiving Israeli citizenship is very rare:

It is possible, in very extreme circumstances, such as having an Israeli spouse under certain conditions or based on particular services to the Israeli government (and even those situations are often contravened). However, most Palestinians cannot gain Israeli citizenship, especially if they were born and raised outside of Israel/Palestine.

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  • So many years after asking this question and then two answers and an open bounty. I think your answer covers the question very well, but it would be interesting to have a better source than a Quora answer wrt to the Israeli citizenship :-)
    – Haini
    May 22, 2019 at 19:08
  • @Haini - yes, I am also not happy with the references. The other two seem to be from Israeli which have some bias (naturally). I have also found the article cited by Time4Tea, but could not find other source to back up the information. I will try to find more information about MEDSTAT which should be less biased since is EU related.
    – Alexei
    May 22, 2019 at 19:11
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This article, from about a month ago, describes a Palestinian woman from Gaza who moved to Belgium and is now running for office in the Belgian parliament. So, the example seems to prove that it is physically and practically possible for someone to leave the Gaza strip.

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