A PALESTINIAN MAN who has been sleeping rough for months having fled the war in his native land has been granted permission to pursue his action against the State over his request to be placed in international protection accommodation and to receive a vulnerability assessment.

The man has claimed before the High Court that he suffers from PTSD and that being homeless amidst the “increasing level of criminality and anti-immigrant sentiment” in Dublin has worsened his mental health.

He has taken the action against the Minister for Children, Equality, Integration and Youth as well as Ireland and the Attorney General.

The international protection status applicant is seeking an order compelling the Minister to perform the “public duty imposed on him” under EU the Regulations and the Reception Conditions Directive by providing him with “material reception conditions”.

The conditions include accommodation or housing and “in particular, a vulnerability assessment without further delay”.

The application was brought on behalf of the man, who is in his 40s, by barrister Keivon Sotoodeh, instructed by Patrick J Sweeney Solicitors, and leave for hearing was granted by Mr Justice Mark Heslin at an out-of-term High Court sitting last month.

The man is also seeking a declaration that the Minister’s alleged failure to perform a public duty imposed on him by EU regulations since he indicated his intention to apply for international protection has been “unlawful”.

His lawyers also seek a declaration that the respondent acted in breach of the man’s rights to a “dignified standard of living”, pursuant to EU law regarding applicants for international protection covering human dignity, integrity of the person, prohibition on inhuman and degrading treatment and respect for family life.

The applicant states that he arrived in Ireland in March 2024 and presented himself at the International Protection Office to make his application.

The statement grounding the application to the High Court claims the man was “forced to flee his home country of Palestine, due to the ongoing conflict therein and the very real danger that he found himself in”.

It is claimed the man has been homeless for the past 10 months and that he “desperately requires” assistance to accommodate him as he has been sleeping rough in a tent “where he has been exposed to the elements in the middle of winter”.

In addition, the grounding statement says the man is suffering from PTSD as a result of what he experienced in Palestine.

He claims that his mental health is adversely affected by homelessness and further submits that “sleeping rough in an area such as Dublin, which experiences an increasing level of criminality and anti-immigrant sentiment”, resulted in his mental health worsening further.

“Admitting the applicant to accommodation within the portfolio of International Protection Accommodation Services would improve his health, safety, and would place him in a position that would facilitate him receiving the medical care that he urgently needs,” the statement asserts.

The man’s lawyers say his situation is now “very critical and he is becoming more and more desperate”.

At the High Court today, Ms Justice Mary Rose Gearty adjourned the matter to tomorrow.