“The first visit back to Syria was like medicine”: Mouhyedin returns home after 13 years

Over three million Syrian refugees and internally displaced people have now returned home following the fall of the Assad regime last December. But many families are facing immense challenges as they try to pick up the pieces and rebuild their lives. Syrian refugee and chef Mouhyedin reflects on his first visits home after 13 years – and explains why hope matters now more than ever.

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In March, I went back to my hometown of Homs, Syria for the first time in 13 years. When I was forced to flee in 2012, I never knew I’d be away that long. So it was unbelievable to see my friends, my family and my old neighbourhood, where I’d been born and raised.

But it was also hard for me to see what’s happening on the ground and how people are still struggling, despite the end of the war. Many families I know have lost their homes, their jobs and their loved ones. Others are returning from exile – but there’s little left for them back home.

The war has changed everything. It’s torn so many lives apart. Before, I had a good life – living in Homs, studying for my baccalaureate and surrounded by people I loved.

But that all changed when the bombs started dropping. My home – where my family had lived for 100 years – was destroyed and it became too dangerous to walk the streets.

My family insisted that I flee to Lebanon, and I lived there for five years before coming to the UK as part of UNHCR’s resettlement scheme for vulnerable people.

I moved to Darlington in the north-east, where I set up a business – Falafel Fella – and made a new life for myself. I always missed home and family. But for a long time during the Bashar al-Assad regime, I felt like I didn’t belong in Syria any more and didn’t see myself returning any time soon.

Mouhyedin (second right) pictured on his return to Syria.

It was only when the government fell last December that I changed my mind and suddenly felt a strong urge to go back. I was worried I was starting to lose my memories of home and all the people and places I once knew. So I decided to visit Homs last March – and as soon as I got there, all those memories came flooding back.

“The first visit back to Syria was like medicine – I needed that medicine to keep me alive. I felt like someone who eats and eats and can’t get full. Once I went back, it was as though I couldn’t get enough of it.”

I went for a second time in July and spent a month there, reconnecting with friends and family and revisiting familiar spots. This time, I took my friends Fran and Martin, who’ve become like family to me in the UK. I’ve told them so much about my country over the years, and I wanted them to see it with their own eyes.

It was an amazing month – I was so excited to show them around and introduce them to my Syrian family. But as I said earlier, life is very tough there right now and I feel a huge responsibility to help.

I know what people are going through – I know how it feels to struggle, have no money and go hungry. I know that families in Syria urgently need support and I do what I can to help.

What gives me hope is that Syrians are very creative, resourceful people – I’m not just saying this, but we always find a way to get back on our feet. When I was back in Syria, people were asking me if I needed anything, offering their help. I couldn’t believe it! That’s why I have so much hope for the country.

“They keep going, they keep hoping and they keep on fighting to reach their goals. I have so much hope for the Syrian people. It’s not optional.”

Since the Assad regime fell, over one million Syrians have returned home. Now, after 14 years of war, the work is just beginning. Now is the time to help the Syrian people to stay and rebuild.

The people in Syria, they’ve been through very tough times, 14 years of war. And they need our help, now more than before. And tomorrow, more than now.

Meanwhile, I’ll keep working hard too – building new dreams for myself, and for my family, my community, the people I love here in Darlington and in Syria. All of them are included in my future. They are part of my dreams.

Sometimes I feel a lot of responsibility on my shoulders, but it’s motivation to keep going and keep giving back. It is our responsibility as human beings to help each other, because you never know when you’ll be the one in need of help.

I would never have come to the UK if it wasn’t for the war, but this country saved my life – and I’m very grateful indeed for that.

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You can learn more about UNHCR’s work in Syria here.

If you’d like to support Syrian refugees, as well as displaced families in Afghanistan and Ukraine this winter, please make a donation to our winter appeal here.