Switzerland concludes most asylum cases for Gaza children and caregivers

Switzerland has closed 92 asylum cases involving injured children from Gaza and their caregivers brought to the country for treatment. The State Secretariat for Migration said on Wednesday, October 28, that 61 people were granted refugee status and 31 received temporary admission.

The cases followed the arrival of 20 injured children in 2025 for care in Swiss hospitals. Their caregivers were included in the asylum procedures, which the SEM said followed the standard process. Most have now reached a decision, while a small number of proceedings remain before the Federal Administrative Court or have resumed after an appeal.

The decisions establish different forms of status for people in the group. The SEM’s figures also show that many hold residence permits in Switzerland, while three have left the country permanently.

The 92 concluded cases divide into 61 refugee-status decisions and 31 grants of temporary admission. The SEM reported the totals to the Keystone-SDA news agency. Refugee status was the outcome in the larger share of closed cases; temporary admission was granted to the other group.

The two outcomes account for all 92 cases reported as closed. Separately, four people are awaiting a Federal Administrative Court decision concerning provisional admission. Proceedings for two others resumed after an appeal, the SEM said. Those cases remain outside the total of concluded procedures.

The distinction matters in tracking the group’s status: the latest figures describe both completed procedures and a limited number still moving through legal review. The SEM has confirmed that everyone brought from Gaza underwent Switzerland’s standard asylum procedure.

Twenty injured children arrived in Switzerland in two groups during 2025. Seven children and their families had arrived by the end of October. At the end of November, 13 more children reached Geneva and Zurich, accompanied by 78 adults, before being sent to hospitals around the country for treatment.

The arrivals brought the children and their caregivers into the Swiss asylum system. The SEM said all underwent the standard procedure. The latest decision figures cover the procedures involving the group, with 92 cases now closed and four provisional-admission matters awaiting a Federal Administrative Court decision. Two more proceedings have resumed following an appeal.

The arrivals were organised for hospital treatment in Switzerland. The children travelled from Gaza via Jordan, with the November group arriving in Geneva and Zurich before continuing to hospitals in different parts of the country.