British-Palestinians fight to bring family from Gaza to UK

Yusuf, a British-Palestinian, has not heard from his parents and siblings in Gaza for five days.

Contact with them over the last few months has been disrupted by frequent communications blackouts, which can last for days at a time.

The most recent outage has been the longest, and the most agonising.

“If I could at least hear from someone who could reassure me they are OK, it would keep me going," he told Middle East Eye. “These have been the worst three months of my life.

“It’s beyond imagination... I feel helpless.”

Despite being a British citizen, Yusuf is struggling to bring his family over to the UK.

Lacking a Ukraine-style visa scheme, British nationals wishing to bring their Palestinian relatives to the UK must apply through existing family visa routes, which are prolonged, costly and often exclude siblings, parents of adult children and extended family.

Read more: 'Neglected and abandoned': British-Palestinians fight to bring family from Gaza to UK