Syrians in Germany worried by some politicians' eagerness for them to go home after Assad's fall
Nearly a decade after hundreds of thousands of Syrians arrived in Germany, many are now well-integrated and settled in jobs — and tens of thousands have gained German citizenship
BERLIN (AP) — 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 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.”
