Nearly a decade after he arrived in Germany from Syria and took a selfie with then-Chancellor Angela Merkel, Anas Modamani has finished his university studies and has a German passport.
He’s less positive about some German politicians’ reactions to the fall of Bashar al-Assad, which was followed within hours by the first talk of Syrians returning.
"Berlin has become my second home, I will definitely stay here," Modamani said Tuesday. "I managed it" — a reference to Merkel's famous slogan "We will manage it," coined as Germany faced the challenge of integrating hundreds of thousands of migrants.
As Syrians took to the streets of Berlin Sunday, far-right leader Alice Weidel wrote on social platform X that anyone celebrating a "free Syria" in Germany "evidently no longer has a reason to flee. He should return to Syria immediately."
With a German election approaching and the government under longstanding pressure to reduce irregular migration, some mainstream opposition politicians also appeared eager to kickstart the return of Syrians.
On Monday, prominent conservative lawmaker Jens Spahn suggested on n-tv television the government could say that "for everyone who wants to go back to Syria, we will charter planes for them, they will get a starting fund of 1,000 euros ($1,055)." He stressed, though, that it will take time before it's clear whether things have stabilized.
Such ideas strike Syrians as indecently hasty. Modamani, a 27-year-old from Damascus who came to Germany in 2015, said he was "shocked" by reports of the 1,000-euro proposal.
"I think that’s a terrible idea," he said as he sat over lunch with Syrian friends at a Berlin restaurant. "The situation in Syria is still just as dangerous as before."
Modamani, who finished his studies in business communication, illustrates what German officials acknowledge is the successful integration of many Syrians. A deputy interior minister, Juliane Seifert, said Syrians are "a group that has significantly above-average educational qualifications," among them many doctors.
The number of Syrians gaining German citizenship has risen from 6,700 in 2020 to 75,500 last year, when they were the biggest single group and accounted for 38% of all naturalizations.
Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann, whose conservative party has talked tough on migration, said Tuesday that many Syrian refugees are now "superbly integrated in our country, have a job and are urgently needed here" and no one is thinking of getting such people to leave Germany.
"Those who have already integrated well are still cordially welcome," Herrmann told Deutschlandfunk radio Tuesday. "But it is clear that there are also people who have been here for 10 years and don’t have a job and haven’t integrated well, and then it’s right to help them return to their homeland" if Syria stabilizes.
It's not surprising that hopes of a more stable Syria raise hopes in Germany of reducing immigration. Official figures show that, at the end of October, there were nearly 975,000 Syrian nationals in Germany, a country of 83 million. The majority had some kind of refugee or other protected status.
On Monday, Germany and a string of other European countries announced that they were suspending decisions on Syrians' asylum applications as they wait for the situation in Syria to become clearer. Over 47,000 cases are pending in Germany, one of the main destinations for Syrians outside the Middle East.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said that is the right thing to do, but it would be "unserious to speculate in such a volatile situation" about the eventual return of Syrians.
Among those who will face a longer wait is Basil Khalil, a 26-year-old Kurdish Syrian who said he applied for asylum Monday after crossing from Türkiye into Bulgaria and traveling to Germany on the back of a truck. Khalil said he spent the last nine years as a refugee in Türkiye, but was worried that Turkish authorities may soon start deporting Syrians.
"I applied for asylum in Germany because I’m afraid that back in Syria I may get drafted as a soldier," he told The Associated Press as his cousin translated for him.
"But if the German government will deport me, then I guess I will go back," Khalil said. "We Syrians have been through so much suffering, all we want to do is survive."
Tarek Alaows, a spokesperson for pro-refugee group Pro Asyl, said that "many from the Syrian community naturally want to return ... Many want to participate in the reconstruction. But they must not be forced to leave the country" for a still-unstable Syria.
Alaows, 35, who fled Damascus in 2015 and became a German citizen over three years ago, said many Syrians in Germany were concerned to hear public calls so soon for the quick return of Syrians.
"These debates that are going on right now — nobody needs them," he said.
Yamn Molhem, who arrived 10 years ago, sees it the same way. The 39-year-old father of four now manages the Aldimashqi restaurant on Berlin’s Sonnenallee boulevard, known for its many Arabic stores and businesses.
"All of my family has left Aleppo, and the situation in Syria is generally very unstable," he said.
Molhem said he is applying for a German passport, proudly adding that his youngest son already has one.
"They can’t deport our family," said, "My son is German."
In general, Molhem said, Germans should think twice before they even consider sending back Syrians who work, pay taxes and help keep the economy running.
"Syrians don’t just sleep here," he said.
