In an oral statement delivered by the Palestinian Return Centre (PRC) before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, the Centre called on the international community and the Egyptian government to grant Palestinian refugees displaced from Syria to Egypt a secure legal status that guarantees their basic rights. This intervention took place during a session under Item 4 related to Syria, as part of the 57th session of the Human Rights Council.

Fayez Abu Eid, Director of the Action Group for Palestinians of Syria, who delivered the statement on behalf of PRC, highlighted the precarious legal situation of Palestinian-Syrian refugees in Egypt, who remain without comprehensive legal protection. He pointed out that approximately 3,000 Palestinian-Syrian refugees face significant challenges in obtaining legal residency due to the Egyptian authorities' refusal to recognize them as refugees.

Abu Eid stressed that the lack of legal protection exposes these refugees to the risk of imprisonment or forced deportation, noting that they are treated as foreign nationals rather than refugees, depriving them of the right to register with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). He further highlighted the difficulties they face in verifying their identity documents and the harsh living conditions exacerbated by inflation and rising living costs.

He added that education presents another major challenge, as Egypt's Ministry of Education requires valid residency permits for school enrollment, resulting in 55% of Palestinian-Syrian refugee children being denied access to education. Refugees who entered Egypt irregularly face additional hardships, including restricted mobility, inability to work, and the inability to travel through official border crossings due to the authorities’ refusal to regularize their status.

In his concluding remarks, Abu Eid urged the Egyptian government to provide Palestinian-Syrian refugees with a secure legal status that protects their basic rights, especially for those without official documentation or facing deportation orders. He also called for the lifting of restrictions on these refugees and urged international organizations like UNICEF and UNHCR to facilitate children's school enrollment and ensure their right to education.

Abu Eid also called upon UNRWA and the Palestinian Authority to intervene to improve the legal situation of Palestinian-Syrian refugees in Egypt. According to unofficial statistics, the number of Palestinian-Syrians in Egypt has dropped from 6,000 to around 3,500 by 2018, with about 500 of them having entered through irregular routes from Sudan, facing complicated legal challenges due to Egypt's refusal to recognize them as refugees.