Until Assad is out, Syrians like me will be too afraid to return home

Years of war, and years of dictatorship before that, have made Syrians afraid of our own country. We are afraid of arbitrary arrests and the prospect of our children, friends and neighbours being killed as a warning for speaking out against the regime

As a Syrian in Britain, it’s sometimes hard to know what people think of me. Do they know how hard it was to leave our homes behind? Or do people just wish we’d all go back to where we came from?

The use of chemical weapons in Syria has shocked the world, and it is overwhelmingly likely that these attacks were perpetrated by the Assad regime. Paramedics reported that those affected had symptoms characteristic of chemical attacks including acute dyspnoea.

A blueness had struck their faces, their mouths were covered in foam, and their eyes were startled. Russian-Syrian air forces carried out more than 350 airstrikes over the course of two days while Syrian regime helicopters dropped no less than 120 barrel bombs. Assad has said he is “bored” of these accounts. That is because Syrian lives mean nothing to him.

My time in London has shown me that by contrast, people here do care, and want to help. They don’t judge us, but feel compassion for what we have been through. Most people have seen the horrific images of life in Syria – images of mothers holding their dead children, buildings bombed to rubble and communities brutalised by terrorism. They know that Syria is hell on earth and we would not have fled if we were not desperate.

I escaped Syria with my young son when he was just five years old. We are not economic migrants and we did not even come with the noble aim of “building a better life”. Instead we came for our safety. Many left reluctantly, and only fled after it was clear that their families would be killed if they stayed – either by Assad or by extremists. We left behind our relatives, homes, memories and our history.

Despite this, we know we are among the lucky ones. That is why I set up Syrian House, a charity dedicated to helping Syrians who have escaped the war. This includes supporting Syrians by providing English classes, legal support and counselling for those traumatised by life in a warzone.

Britain has given us the chance to live in a country where our children can go to school, and where people can go outside without first checking for snipers. The truth is that while we are grateful to be alive, most Syrians dream of the day it is safe to return home. Some people ask me what the answer is.

After seven years of conflict, there are no quick fixes and no easy answers. But there are solutions.

First the world must pursue a political solution without delay including immediate action against the criminality of the Syrian regime and Russia by the 193 countries that have ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Second, we must stop the regime from seizing the land of those forced to flee. Many buildings have been destroyed in the years of war and the regime has tried to seize the houses, lands and property of those who fled to Europe and neighbouring countries. After all, we will not be able to return home if there are no homes to return to.

Third, it is critical that Assad is removed from power. The removal of Assad is fundamental to not only stop the violence we see, but because Syrians will only feel safe enough to return home when his poison is gone. Years of war, and years of dictatorship before that, have made Syrians afraid of our own country. We are afraid of arbitrary arrests and the prospect of our children, friends and neighbours being killed as a warning for speaking out against the regime.

Perhaps most importantly however, Syria’s future depends on democracy. Democracy means that disagreements result in debate, not death. It will mean ordinary Syrians can at last have a say in how the country is run – not watch helplessly as dictators are replaced by terrorists.

It will mean the establishment of a rule of law under which all people are treated equally, and where those responsible for this suffering are held to account. Ordinary Syrians have made themselves clear from the start: we do not want extremism, and we do not want dictatorship.

I have heard some call out the international condemnation as “not enough” – but in my eyes, condemnation is better than silence. It is certainly better than giving up and conceding to Assad and his murderous regime. It is not enough to criticise what the world did or did not do in the past – we must act now, in the present.

That is why it is so important that the international community continues to come together and take action against those responsible for the suffering we see before our eyes. We must not label this war too difficult to resolve but build on our collective will to secure a diplomatic solution to end the violence.

We must act now, not only so families in Syria are safe, but so that those of us forced to flee can at last go home.

Bahia was director of the official Syrian Opposition at the UN. She is a human rights activist and founder of Syrian House, which helps Syrians resettled in the UK. She was forced to flee Assad with her young son after exposing his human rights abuses