Helping Gazan family enter UK would be a security ‘step too far’, court told

Allowing a Palestinian family to leave Gaza and reunite with their father in the UK would be a “step too far” in risking national security, lawyers for the Government have told the High Court.

The family of six, aged between 14 and 23, are taking legal action against the Home Office and Foreign Office after they were refused onward travel assurances (OTAs), which are necessary for them to leave the war-stricken territory.

Lawyers for the Government said that it is UK policy not to allow foreign nationals into the country without biometric checks.

As these checks cannot be carried out in Gaza, and the only means of leaving the country is through Jordan, OTAs must be given to the Jordanian authorities that would allow the family to travel to the UK where the biometric tests would be carried out.

The family is challenging Government decisions made in September and October which looked at a larger group of Palestinians, and a further one in December, which looked at their individual case.

In written submissions for a hearing on Monday, Rory Dunlop KC, for the Government, said ministers decided not to offer the travel documents because it would be a “step too far” in deviating from UK policy.

He said: “An OTA is an exception to that policy because it requires the Secretary of State for the Home Department to guarantee entry before biometrics have been checked.

“Every exception to Her Majesty’s Government biometric policy carries risks to national and border security, because the individual may pose a risk that can only be identified by their biometrics.

“That is particularly so in a case, as here, where some of the claimants seeking an OTA are adults living in an area where there has been significant terrorist activity.”

Mr Dunlop described the biometric checks as a “vital tool in protecting border and national security” and that it must be for democratically-elected officials, not the courts, “to decide how far Her Majesty’s Government will go” to assist individuals wanting to leave Gaza.

Charlotte Kilroy KC, for the family, said in written submissions that the Government breached the human rights of the family by refusing to assist in September and that the December decision “perpetuates those failings, and adds further errors of law”.

She also said that the family can establish their identities through passports and that Israel has already approved their exit and transit through the country.

She added: “Israel uses tools of mass-surveillance in Gaza, meaning any risks they posed related to terrorism activity in the region, would have been identified.

“The claimants have never left Gaza meaning there is no real prospect of their data being held or showing risk to the public interest in UK biometric checks.”

In written submissions for a previous hearing in December, Ms Kilroy said the father, who attended court on Monday, is taking medication for his poor mental health as he worries about the safety of his family.

She said he “cries all the time, is unable to cope, has no appetite, struggles to sleep” and “will end his life” if he cannot be with his family or they are killed.

The barrister also said that the children have not heard from their mother since August 2024, have “narrowly missed being killed by bombings on multiple occasions”, have breathed in toxic gases, are starving and have “resorted to eating grass”, are waking up screaming from nightmares and send their father messages “begging” him to save them.

The hearing, before Mr Justice Sheldon, is due to conclude on Monday with a judgment expected at a later date.