“Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each State.  Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and return to his country”

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 ARTICLE 13 OF THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

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      In 1948, during the Nakba, over 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly displaced as the Israeli State was established.  There are now over seven million Palestinians internationally; many have no right to return to Palestine, even for short visits.

       For Palestinians who remain, including as internally displaced refugees, Israel controls almost all aspects of the land, dividing it up into Gaza, the West Bank and 48 (also termed Israel). Surrounding these areas with walls, Palestinians are almost completely restricted from travelling between the different areas.

        Causing mass displacement and dividing Palestinians into geographical, legal and administrative groupings, not only physically stops people from coming together but allows Israel to control and fracture communication, exchange of knowledge, sharing of ideas and unity of identity.

      Israel also has sole authority over the airspace, inhibiting the Palestinian right to have airports whilst also controlling all borders. 

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TRAVEL IN AND OUT OF GAZA

      Since 2007, there has been a blockade on Gaza restricting the movement of everything from food, water, medicine and people. Entrance in and out of Gaza is highly restricted and difficult , including for artists who cannot travel to perform, exhibit work or collaborate internationally.

 

​TRAVEL IN AND OUT OF THE WEST BANK

     In the West Bank, Israel controls the border, regularly banning Palestinians from leaving. This includes artists whose work they deem too political or those they have previously imprisoned. Those who are allowed to cross face an overland journey that involves crossing three borders (Palestinian, Israeli, and Jordanian) where you can be subjected to aggressive and humiliating interrogations, takes a minimum of one day and costs 150 Euro one way.

    In the West Bank and East Jerusalem, OCHA recorded 565 Israeli obstructions to movement, including checkpoints, roadblocks, and trenches. This means that even within the West Bank, movement is highly restricted, with artists having to take long and difficult journeys if they want to tour or study in different cities.

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​TRAVEL IN AND OUT OF 48

    Palestinians who live in 48 as Israeli citizens, can travel through Israeli airports but face arbitrary travel bans and intense security searches at Israeli airports.

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TRAVEL IN AND OUT OF PALESTINE FOR INTERNATIONALS

    Israel also controls entrance into the West Bank and 48 for internationals. The only visa that is realistically available is a three-month Israeli tourist visa. Therefore, foreigners cannot enter regularly, and anyone thought to be travelling to, working with or volunteering for a Palestine organisation will be banned from entrance. Those with Arab or Muslim identity or heritage are subject to additional scrutiny and are much more likely to be refused entrance. 

    In 2017 Amendment No. 28 was made in Israeli Law prohibiting the entry into Israel (and therefore Palestine) any foreigner who makes a "public call for boycotting Israel" or "any area under its control" – a reference to the Israeli settlements. 

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VISAS

      Costly and discriminative international visa policies and border enforcement measures disproportionately affect Palestinians and are intentionally complex, with the aim to make entering certain countries almost impossible.

     Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza have a Palestinian Passport, which as of February 2024 ranks 188th in the world, with entrance to only 13 countries possible without a visa. By comparison, the Israeli passport ranks 53rd in the world with visa free access to 133 countries.

      Palestinians living in East Jerusalem have a laissez-passer, an international travel document intended for stateless persons, in lieu of a passport, making visa applications even more complicated.

 

Some examples of obtaining visas that directly affect Palestinians include but are not limited to:

• Visa applications often require the person to declare a criminal record or if they have been charged with terrorism. 40% of the male and 20% of the female Palestinian population has been imprisoned by Israel. Often under ‘terrorism” charges, there is no proper judicial system, trial or charge and “evidence”, which most likely doesn't exist, is kept secret from the defendant and their lawyer.

• Countries like the US require you to physically go to their embassy in Jordan. They can hold your passport for up to two weeks, meaning you must remain in another country awaiting a visa.

• The UK visa application requires someone to declare and prove they have regular income and financial security. This penalises those who work as artists in a freelance capacity and who come from places where there is a much lower GDP.