Syria’s Civil War 

Civilians in Syria

Civilians in Syria

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The more than a million Syrians who fled to Germany celebrated the end of the war in their country, but some fear it could mean squandering their prestige as refugees.

By Melissa Eddy

Melissa Eddy reported from Gross Schönebeck, Germany, a small village outside Berlin, where she visited a family of Syrian refugees.

When she learned that the Syrian dynastic dictatorship had fallen, Iman Mohammed, a Syrian refugee living in Germany, felt a surge of joy at the thought of returning to her homeland.

But that joy quickly faltered as another thought occurred to her: Going back to Syria could mean giving up everything that she and her family had built in Germany since making the dangerous trek to arrive there nearly a decade ago.

“In the cold light of day, when we looked at everything that had happened, we realized, not immediately,” Mohammed, 41, said of the idea that his family could return to Syria for good.

The resolution may not be his.

After rebel groups toppled President Bashar al-Assad’s government on Dec. 8, the prospect of returning home opened for the first time in more than a decade for the many Syrians who fled during the civil war that ravaged the country, including 1.3 million in Germany.

Many of them worked hard and overcame situations that were immensely demanding for their situation. Some, like Ms. Mohammed, do not need to give up their new life.

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