Khalaf Alkhalaf, Alumnus of the Year:
PHOTO: REYER BOXEM
‘Have you
ever met
an asylum seeker’
PROPOSITION
halaf Alkhalaf begins the interview with a poignant question: ‘Have you ever met a Syrian asylum seeker?’ ‘That’s good’, he replies to my affirmative answer. ‘Because in my work, I’ve noticed that a lot of people tend to circulate in their own bubbles. A French film maker has been
K
Sisay M. Alemu – Faculteit Medische Wetenschappen
‘The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.’ (Neil deGrasse Tyson)
Khalaf Alkhalaf (1988) trained as a nurse in Syria and took a Bachelor’s programme in Information and Communication Technologies at the University of Aleppo (did not graduate). He fled to the Netherlands in 2015, obtaining a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies and a Master’s degree in International Relations and International Organization at the UG. After graduating, he worked as location coordinator for the Red Cross and is currently a team lead with the Dutch Refugee Council.
TEXT: BERT PLATZER
He was one of the first Syrian refugees to graduate from the UG and is now
also Alumnus of the Year. As a legal team lead with the Dutch Council for Refugees
(VluchtelingenWerk Nederland), Khalaf Alkhalaf helps refugees and shares his
knowledge with professionals and students.
PHOTO: REYER BOXEM
shadowing me at work for the past two weeks. He’s well-educated, has a PhD, but had never actually met or spoken to an asylum seeker. He thought that people in refugee shelters slept on the floor, that it would be dirty and noisy, and that people would fight. So he was amazed when we walked into the TT hall in Assen. People hear a lot about asylum seekers, but what they hear doesn’t necessarily reflect the reality.’
And this is exactly what Alkhalaf sees as one of his main tasks: talking to people from as many bubbles as possible about asylum seekers. It’s why he goes into secondary schools to talk, for example. ‘At these presentations, 99% of the students answer “no” when asked if they’ve ever met an asylum seeker. They mainly hear about it via social media, but usually do not have a negative attitude towards asylum seekers.’
Perception
He’s also given presentations to a group of international students and a housing corporation in Emmen, to help them understand how asylum seekers perceive the world. He talks to staff working for the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) about the problems that asylum seekers face, asking them for more understanding. ‘I’ve given guest lectures about this to psychology students at the UG these past two years. Because it is important to know what asylum seekers have been through before they arrive here and what the impact of the reception is on their mental health. They want a residence permit, a house, a chance to start a proper life here. But if you’re forced to stay in a reception facility for two, three years, as is the case at the moment, you lose your motivation.’
Alkhalaf speaks from experience. He arrived in the Netherlands as a refugee himself in 2015. He had opposed the Assad regime since the start of the Syrian Civil war in 2011, and deserted from military service after a few months. He worked as a nurse in a children’s hospital run by Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in the north-east of Syria, and finally ended up in the Netherlands after having been taken hostage by ISIS.
Well received
Alkhalaf: ‘The situation for asylum seekers then was good. We had a right to asylum and the reception facilities were good. I had a residence permit within six months and an apartment in Groningen within nine. Obviously there were plenty of challenges too, such as learning the language and coming into contact with people. I was on my own and had to start again. I’d made friends at the reception facility, but I didn’t know anyone in Groningen. I was a frequent visitor at Humanitas – a place where volunteers help people to improve their situation – as well as at the language café and the library. A language coach helped me to find a running club and other group activities I could join. And I worked at Hortus Haren and an organization for people with a disability.'
Traumatic experience
A step back in time: deserting Assad’s army, being kidnapped by ISIS, fleeing to the Netherlands — three traumatic experiences. Was he able to come to terms with these events in the reception facility? ‘No. The COA and the Asylum Seekers Healthcare System simply don’t have the capacity and specialists needed. Even ordinary Dutch people sometimes have to wait months or years for an appointment with a psychologist or psychosocial therapist. I went to the GP several times because I couldn’t sleep, had stomach ache, pain in my shoulder. He never asked about what had happened to me in Syria. The consultations took five minutes: take paracetamol, drink plenty of water, get some rest. That was it. The word psychologist never came up. Luckily, I’ve been able to work through my experiences myself. So, in the past few years, I’ve been able to tell other asylum seekers: “Be careful. Based on what I’ve seen, you have a problem. You have specific symptoms that don’t tie in with ordinary issues, and you need to see a psychologist”.’
Time at university
Alkhalaf wanted to study at the UG, so he took a Grotius Minor (for holders of a residence permit who want to study for a degree) at Hanze University of Applied Sciences, and a qualifying year at the Alfa College for non-Dutch speakers who have followed higher education. He was awarded a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies in 2021, making him one of the first Syrian refugees to graduate from the UG. In 2022, he took a Master’s programme in International Relations and International Organization.
For most students, their time at university is one of freedom and happiness, but this was not the case for Alkhalaf. ‘It was a difficult time. It wasn’t easy to study in both English and Dutch. I was living – and still live – in two worlds. I’d sometimes be in a lecture and get a text or WhatsApp message telling me that one of my brothers had been taken hostage or arrested, that one of my friends had been murdered, or that the entire village had had to flee. The war in Syria had a huge impact on my day-to-day life. The Russian army was carrying out daily air raids on villages and hospitals in Syria. I followed the news, but also had to attend lectures and do exams. I was thirty when I started my degree. My fellow-students were 18 or 19 and lived in a completely different world.’
Job
After working as location coordinator for the Red Cross, two-and-a-half years ago he was appointed as Legal Team Lead with the Dutch Council for Refugees. ‘Together with a team of volunteers, we provide legal advice to new asylum seekers. We invite them, give them information about the asylum procedure, their rights and obligations, and explain what they can expect in the weeks, months, and years to come. We also tell them how things work here: if you have mental health problems, go to the Healthcare for Asylum Seekers service; if you get into an argument with a fellow-asylum seeker, go to the COA. Things like that. And we tell them that they need to get their story straight to back up their right to asylum. We also mediate between asylum seekers and other organizations, such as the Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) and the COA.’
Much longer wait
Ten years ago, when Alkhalaf arrived in the Netherlands, Syrian refugees were welcomed with sympathy. Now however, the Netherlands’ most right-wing government ever is in its last throes and rather than six months, it takes two-and-a-half years for refugees to get a residence permit. So has the climate for asylum seekers worsened in the past ten years? Alkhalaf doesn’t think so. ‘The fact that asylum seekers have to wait much longer for a decision from the IND has certainly made conditions worse. But are asylum seekers being discriminated against or hounded out? Not that I have noticed. If your only source is social media, the climate for asylum seekers is abhorrent. But migration is a subject that is misused on social media by both right and left-wing supporters. You can’t just say that everyone has a right to asylum and can come to the Netherlands. It’s important to exercise control on migration.’
Recognition
It means a lot to Alkhalaf that the UG has made him Alumnus of the Year 2025 for his help in welcoming, guiding, and providing information for refugees, as well as for professionals, students, and school pupils. ‘It’s made me even more motivated to help people. It’s recognition for my work, acknowledgement that I’m doing the right thing. The Netherlands has given me opportunities to develop my talents, learn new skills, and play a part in a society that revolves around human rights and human dignity. I am genuinely grateful for this.’
Return to Syria
Last May, six months after the fall of Assad’s regime, Alkhalaf returned to Syria for the first time since he fled. ‘It was wonderful’, he says with a huge smile. ‘The fact that I could go back to Syria after ten years felt like a dream come true. Despite everything that’s happened, I still feel a strong bond with Syria. I want to go back to play a physical, social, and mental part in reconstructing the country. I believe that everything I’ve learned in the Netherlands about society, democracy, diversity, and solidarity has enabled me to make a valuable difference to this process. My wish to return is rooted in hope: hope for peace, rebuilding of trust, and a society where people can live in safety. It won’t be easy, but my heart longs to play an active role in Syria’s recovery, together with other people who dream of peace and justice for Syria.’
‘Have you ever met
an asylum seeker’
Khalaf Alkhalaf,
Alumnus of the Year:
PHOTO: REYER BOXEM
PROPOSITION
Sisay M. Alemu – Faculteit Medische Wetenschappen
‘The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.’ (Neil deGrasse Tyson)
Syrian asylum seeker?’ ‘That’s good’, he replies to my affirmative answer. ‘Because in my work, I’ve noticed that a lot of people tend to circulate in their own bubbles. A French film maker has been shadowing me at work for the past two weeks. He’s well-educated, has a PhD, but had never actually met or spoken to an asylum seeker. He thought that people in refugee shelters slept on the floor, that it would be dirty and noisy, and that people would fight. So he was amazed when we walked into the TT hall in Assen. People hear a lot about asylum seekers, but what they hear doesn’t necessarily reflect the reality.’
And this is exactly what Alkhalaf sees as one of his main tasks: talking to people from as many bubbles as possible about asylum seekers. It’s why he goes into secondary schools to talk, for example. ‘At these presentations, 99% of the students answer “no” when asked if they’ve ever met an asylum seeker. They mainly hear about it via social media, but usually do not have a negative attitude towards asylum seekers.’
Perception
He’s also given presentations to a group of international students and a housing corporation in Emmen, to help them understand how asylum seekers perceive the world. He talks to staff working for the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) about the problems that asylum seekers face, asking them for more understanding. ‘I’ve given guest lectures about this to psychology students at the UG these past two years. Because it is important to know what asylum seekers have been through before they arrive here and what the impact of the reception is on their mental health. They want a residence permit, a house, a chance to start a proper life here. But if you’re forced to stay in a reception facility for two, three years, as is the case at the moment, you lose your motivation.’
Alkhalaf speaks from experience. He arrived in the Netherlands as a refugee himself in 2015. He had opposed the Assad regime since the start of the Syrian Civil war in 2011, and deserted from military service after a few months. He worked as a nurse in a children’s hospital run by Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in the north-east of Syria, and finally ended up in the Netherlands after having been taken hostage by ISIS.
Well received
Alkhalaf: ‘The situation for asylum seekers then was good. We had a right to asylum and the reception facilities were good. I had a residence permit within six months and an apartment in Groningen within nine. Obviously there were plenty of challenges too, such as learning the language and coming into contact with people. I was on my own and had to start again. I’d made friends at the reception facility, but I didn’t know anyone in Groningen. I was a frequent visitor at Humanitas – a place where volunteers help people to improve their situation – as well as at the language café and the library. A language coach helped me to find a running club and other group activities I could join. And I worked at Hortus Haren and an organization for people with a disability.'
Traumatic experience
A step back in time: deserting Assad’s army, being kidnapped by ISIS, fleeing to the Netherlands — three traumatic experiences. Was he able to come to terms with these events in the reception facility? ‘No. The COA and the Asylum Seekers Healthcare System simply don’t have the capacity and specialists needed. Even ordinary Dutch people sometimes have to wait months or years for an appointment with a psychologist or psychosocial therapist. I went to the GP several times because I couldn’t sleep, had stomach ache, pain in my shoulder. He never asked about what had happened to me in Syria. The consultations took five minutes: take paracetamol, drink plenty of water, get some rest. That was it. The word psychologist never came up. Luckily, I’ve been able to work through my experiences myself. So, in the past few years, I’ve been able to tell other asylum seekers: “Be careful. Based on what I’ve seen, you have a problem. You have specific symptoms that don’t tie in with ordinary issues, and you need to see a psychologist”.’
Time at university
Alkhalaf wanted to study at the UG, so he took a Grotius Minor (for holders of a residence permit who want to study for a degree) at Hanze University of Applied Sciences, and a qualifying year at the Alfa College for non-Dutch speakers who have followed higher education. He was awarded a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies in 2021, making him one of the first Syrian refugees to graduate from the UG. In 2022, he took a Master’s programme in International Relations and International Organization.
For most students, their time at university is one of freedom and happiness, but this was not the case for Alkhalaf. ‘It was a difficult time. It wasn’t easy to study in both English and Dutch. I was living – and still live – in two worlds. I’d sometimes be in a lecture and get a text or WhatsApp message telling me that one of my brothers had been taken hostage or arrested, that one of my friends had been murdered, or that the entire village had had to flee. The war in Syria had a huge impact on my day-to-day life. The Russian army was carrying out daily air raids on villages and hospitals in Syria. I followed the news, but also had to attend lectures and do exams. I was thirty when I started my degree. My fellow-students were 18 or 19 and lived in a completely different world.’
Job
After working as location coordinator for the Red Cross, two-and-a-half years ago he was appointed as Legal Team Lead with the Dutch Council for Refugees. ‘Together with a team of volunteers, we provide legal advice to new asylum seekers. We invite them, give them information about the asylum procedure, their rights and obligations, and explain what they can expect in the weeks, months, and years to come. We also tell them how things work here: if you have mental health problems, go to the Healthcare for Asylum Seekers service; if you get into an argument with a fellow-asylum seeker, go to the COA. Things like that. And we tell them that they need to get their story straight to back up their right to asylum. We also mediate between asylum seekers and other organizations, such as the Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) and the COA.’
Much longer wait
Ten years ago, when Alkhalaf arrived in the Netherlands, Syrian refugees were welcomed with sympathy. Now however, the Netherlands’ most right-wing government ever is in its last throes and rather than six months, it takes two-and-a-half years for refugees to get a residence permit. So has the climate for asylum seekers worsened in the past ten years? Alkhalaf doesn’t think so. ‘The fact that asylum seekers have to wait much longer for a decision from the IND has certainly made conditions worse. But are asylum seekers being discriminated against or hounded out? Not that I have noticed. If your only source is social media, the climate for asylum seekers is abhorrent. But migration is a subject that is misused on social media by both right and left-wing supporters. You can’t just say that everyone has a right to asylum and can come to the Netherlands. It’s important to exercise control on migration.’
Recognition
It means a lot to Alkhalaf that the UG has made him Alumnus of the Year 2025 for his help in welcoming, guiding, and providing information for refugees, as well as for professionals, students, and school pupils. ‘It’s made me even more motivated to help people. It’s recognition for my work, acknowledgement that I’m doing the right thing. The Netherlands has given me opportunities to develop my talents, learn new skills, and play a part in a society that revolves around human rights and human dignity. I am genuinely grateful for this.’
Return to Syria
Last May, six months after the fall of Assad’s regime, Alkhalaf returned to Syria for the first time since he fled. ‘It was wonderful’, he says with a huge smile. ‘The fact that I could go back to Syria after ten years felt like a dream come true. Despite everything that’s happened, I still feel a strong bond with Syria. I want to go back to play a physical, social, and mental part in reconstructing the country. I believe that everything I’ve learned in the Netherlands about society, democracy, diversity, and solidarity has enabled me to make a valuable difference to this process. My wish to return is rooted in hope: hope for peace, rebuilding of trust, and a society where people can live in safety. It won’t be easy, but my heart longs to play an active role in Syria’s recovery, together with other people who dream of peace and justice for Syria.’
K
halaf Alkhalaf begins the interview with a poignant question: ‘Have you ever met a
He was one of the first Syrian refugees to graduate from the UG and is now
also Alumnus of the Year. As a legal team lead with the Dutch Council for Refugees (VluchtelingenWerk Nederland), Khalaf Alkhalaf helps refugees and shares his knowledge with professionals and students.
PHOTO: REYER BOXEM
Khalaf Alkhalaf (1988) trained as a nurse in Syria and took a Bachelor’s programme in Information and Communication Technologies at the University of Aleppo (did not graduate). He fled to the Netherlands in 2015, obtaining a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies and a Master’s degree in International Relations and International Organization at the UG. After graduating, he worked as location coordinator for the Red Cross and is currently a team lead with the Dutch Refugee Council.
TEXT: BERT PLATZER
