Alaya, 38, said he desperately wanted to be with his mother again after so many years apart – but he said this moment in history is coming for his father, who died in 2016, just two years after he left late.

“He passed away and I couldn’t attend his funeral,” he said, adding: “My wish is to say goodbye to my grandmother before she dies… I couldn’t tell my father that.”

Nevertheless, Alaya, a father of three and now a British citizen, has built a life with his family in London, where he is currently setting up a business as an accountant. His life is here now, he said, and reflects a reality shared by many refugees and asylum seekers around the world.

But he can’t wait to return to Syria, where he says some of his family and friends have been held as political prisoners for years, with no knowledge of their whereabouts or conditions for as long.

“Maybe they died. Maybe they disappeared. Maybe they were killed in prison,” he said. “I hope we can hear about it.”