An EU court has ruled that stateless Palestinians can obtain refugee protection in the European Union more easily, if it is determined that the main aid agency in the Gaza Strip cannot provide a minimum level of security and humane living conditions.

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling concerned the grounds for asylum for Gaza refugees and the status of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) which operates in the war-ravaged territory.

Until now, stateless Palestinians in the EU have not been entitled to protection if they already utilize the assistance of UNRWA and are registered with the agency.

Thursday’s ruling stemmed from a case in Bulgaria. In 2018, a mother and her underage daughter from Gaza applied for asylum in Bulgaria. They argued that UNRWA no longer offered them protection and that they should therefore be recognized as refugees. Bulgaria asked the ECJ to weigh in.

The judgement by the Luxembourg court said the standard is now whether or now the Palestinian relief organization can offer Gazans decent living conditions and a minimum level of security.

If UNRWA cannot, the court said, stateless Palestinians could be recognized as refugees in the EU.

The Bulgarian court must now decide on the individual case.

However, the ECJ noted that “both the living conditions in the Gaza Strip and UNRWA’s capacity to fulfil its mission have experienced an unprecedented deterioration due to the consequences of the events of October 7, 2023.”

Hamas and other Palestinian extremists groups massacred some 1,200 people in southern Israel on October 7, which triggered an Israeli air and ground assault on Gaza. Hamas-controlled health authorities say more than 37,000 people have died so far in Gaza.