BERLIN: Thousands of jubilant Syrians rallied in Berlin and cities across Europe on Sunday, waving flags and barely able to contain their joy at the downfall of president Bashar Assad.
“Finally we are free!” exclaimed Bassam Al-Hamada, 39, among 5,000 people at an exuberant rally in the capital of Germany, where the one million-plus Syrians makes it the largest diaspora in Europe.
But Syrians in Athens, Belgrade, Istanbul, London, Paris, Stockholm, Vienna also waved flags in the green, red, black and white colors of the Syrian opposition and made clear their hostility to Assad.
Berlin police said more than 5,000 Syrians gathered in a square in the Kreuzberg district.
Many waved flags and banners that read “Free Syria” and “Freedom,” flashed “V” for victory signs and chanted “Allahu Akbar!” (God is Greatest!).
Despite a cold drizzle, many came with their families. Children’s faces were painted in the Syrian colors. Passing cars honked their horns.
Most Syrians in Germany fled their country after civil war erupted in 2011. A big community now lives in Berlin’s Neukoelln district.
“We’re happy. The dictatorship is over. Assad has gone,” said 39-year-old Berlin resident Ahmed, who preferred not to give his last name.
“All Syrians are together now,” said the railway technician, who fled the Syrian city of Aleppo in 2015.
Ahmad Al-Hallabi, a 27-year-old mechanic from Aleppo, arrived in Germany through Turkiye and Greece in 2015 at the peak of the migrant influx into Europe.
“Ten years ago, I was in Syria and saw things no-one should have to see, things that are impossible to wipe from your memory,” he said.
“Assad is the worst terrorist imaginable ... I hope there’ll be peace and everything Assad and his men destroyed will be rebuilt.”
Germany’s far-right, which has gained popularity on the back of its opposition to the arrival of Syrians and other migrants quickly raised its fears about more arrivals.
“The frontiers are closed, we will not accept any any more,” said Alternative for Germany co-leader Alice Weidel on the X social platform.
Anti-immigrant parties have also made gains in other European countries. “The top priority must be to ensure that the Syrian civilian population has prospects on the ground again and that refugees can return,” Austria’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Assad’s defeat.
Many Syrian say they want to return to their war-battered nation.
“Like many Syrians, I would like to return to my country to help rebuild it,” said Bassam Al-Hamada, a social worker who arrived in Germany in early 2016.
Sabreen, 36, an architect, said she planned to help from Germany.
“They mainly need expertise and money. All of that, we can gather here for the moment,” added the woman.
Like many of the stunned exiles in Berlin, Sabreen called for Assad to answer for the killing and torture of his people in the past 13 years. “He must be tried in the international court in The Hague,” she said.
Hundreds of ecstatic Syrians celebrated the fall of Assad on London’s Trafalgar Square, hugging each other and chanting “Mabrouk!” (Congratulations!).
Syrians greeted each other, many with the opposition flag, and singing: “Syria is ours, not the Assad family’s.”
Hundreds took part in joyous scenes outside the Fatih Mosque in Istanbul, one of the focal points for their 500,000-strong Syrian community in the Turkish city.
Several hundred Syrians also gathered outside parliament in central Athens. “Allah, Syria, freedom!” and “together, together, together,” they chanted.
“I am happy after these 13 years of displacement, massacres and tens of thousands of people killed in prisons,” said Adel Batal, 29.
“I am in Greece because of this regime,” said the man from Aleppo. “My city has been destroyed by this regime.”
Thousands also gathered in Stockholm, Copenhagen and Vienna. Sweden has Europe’s second biggest Syrian diaspora.
“I lost my homeland. My home, my family and my friends, and we fought for 14 years — so yes, today I am happy,” Noura Bittar told Danish local television.
“Of course, we are worried about what the next step will be, what kind of government will be put in place? But for now, we are just happy.”