Most of us rarely think about the existence of people for whom security, food and shelter are the greatest dreams and aspirations. These people are refugees. What difficulties do they face, what past do they bring with them, and why do they choose Bulgaria as their home?

The hero of today's story is Zaheer. That's not his real name. We are using a pseudonym because he asked us to keep his anonymity. Zahir is 35 years old and has been living without a settled status in Bulgaria for nearly 12 years. He's from the West Bank, where he worked in an electronics repair shop - that's what he studied for. Zahir tells us about the difficult and almost unbearable life of the Palestinians there, a life that forces him and many others to leave their homeland in search of a new safe home.

"In the West Bank, Palestinians live like foreigners, even though they have spent their whole lives there and have no other home."

This is what Zahir tells us. He says that he could not move freely there. And no, he is not talking only about movement outside the territory of the West Bank, but about movement within - to go from one city to another, for example, or to move within the city in which he lives. He tells us how sometimes he could not even get to the neighbouring town where he was studying because he was stopped at the intercity crossing points and was not allowed to cross. Zaheer mentions:

"You can't go out in the evening because there's something scary going on, if you're Palestinian you can be attacked or beaten."

However, the restrictions don't stop there. Power cuts often, and Palestinians lack access to a number of other goods. And in order to work, they need countless permissions.

However, the humanitarian crisis and insecurity are not the only reasons why Palestinians are fleeing the occupied territories. They are often unfoundedly accused of being a security threat. Our hero is no exception. He was detained for about 2 years without a final sentence only because an acquaintance of his, in order to save himself, informed that Zahir was a member of a terrorist group with a branch in the Gaza Strip. The argument of this acquaintance of Zahir's is, "You were just the first I thought of."

The path of Palestinian refugees is difficult. Most of us are unable to imagine the challenges they face in pursuit of their one desire - a secure life. Zaheer is one of them. Going on a trip to Jordan, he did not even imagine that he was leaving his hometown forever. When he tries to go back to the border, they just don't let him back. He is not the only one facing this problem. Whenever West Bank residents want to leave or enter the territory, for whatever reason, they are required to pass through Israeli borders.

What is it like to not be let in the place where your life has been? For most of us, this is unthinkable. Zahir, however, due to "security issues" exposed to him, cannot return back to the West Bank and is put in an impasse. He can only stay in Jordan for the duration of his issued short-term visa. After that, he has to leave, but he doesn't really have anywhere to go...at least not legally.

There, in Jordan, Zahir accidentally met a driver who helped him illegally cross the borders of Jordan, then through Syria, Turkey, and thus, traveling this difficult 13-day road, he reached Bulgaria. On the way, he loses his Palestinian refugee travel document and is left with nothing.

Arriving in Bulgaria in 2009, Zahir decided to stay. But it is not easy for him here either. During these 12 years, Zahir applied for international protection four times and was rejected by the State Agency for Refugees each time. Zahir, as a Palestinian refugee and heir to a Palestinian refugee mother who received aid from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Refugees in the Middle East (UNRWA), should receive refugee status in Bulgaria because he is already recognized by the international community for one. This is because he was forced to leave the West Bank against his will and is currently, for reasons beyond his control, unable to return there. However, he never received refugee status.

After multiple rejections, he tries to get a travel document from the embassy to at least try to return, but since he doesn't have any identification documents, his attempt is unsuccessful. So, he becomes nobody, without a country to return to, without documents, without citizenship to rely on.

Sharing his story, he mentioned that after he was denied international protection the first time, the Bulgarian authorities offered him to be deported to Russia or Australia. But how can he even go there since he doesn't have any documents on him? The Bulgarian authorities did not attempt to return him to the West Bank. This is a doomed cause. However, like many others, Zahir also spent nine months in the detention centre for illegal immigrants, called the Special Home for Temporary Accommodation of Foreigners in Busmantsi. The purpose of this detention is return to the country of origin, but apparently this has not happened for 12 years now.

Zaheer leaves the detention centre to find himself in a slightly larger prison without walls. Although free, he cannot move freely. He is afraid to even go outside Sofia, because without documents for legal residence, he may end up in Busmantsi again. However, he nevertheless decided to stay in Bulgaria. With the help of FAR, he applied for the status of a stateless person. During this procedure, however, he has no right to stay in Bulgaria, no right to work for a living, and no right to health or social assistance. After a few months, he was refused by the Migration Directorate - Ministry of Internal Affairs, with the argument that Bulgaria recognizes the existence of the State of Palestine and cannot deny the existence of its citizens. Zaheer is appealing, hoping the court will decide his fate…again. Alas, the court again rejected his appeal and left him without access to rights.

But despite all the difficulties, for 12 years Zahir has been making efforts to integrate into Bulgarian society. He really likes Bulgaria; he has already managed to establish connections and friendships. But things do not always depend on us and our wishes.

And perhaps with the help of his short story presented here, Zaheer will get closer to his dream, which at first glance may seem too trivial to us - a dream of a secure and happy life.

Refugees are people that everyone has heard of, but in reality, only a small part of society really knows. And they are people like us. This story is our attempt to illuminate the shadow falling on the subject of Palestinian refugees with the light of knowledge and hope for change!

This article was prepared by the Foundation for Access to Rights-FAR under a project funded by the European Network for Stateless Persons. The purpose of the project is to investigate the situation of Palestinian refugees from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in Bulgaria and the application of Article 1D of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees to them.

For more information, see our report on the topic.