Mumin keeps looking ahead: 'The first thing I want to do is go to university'

Mumin grew up in a Palestinian refugee family in Syria. As a child, he moved with his family several times. When he was 9 years old, they had to leave their home again because of the war. 'I did not really have a normal childhood,' Mumin says.

Football was a part of his life from an early age. Even before his family had to move again because of the war, Mumin played football with other boys from the neighbourhood. At first, he played as goalkeeper. He watched a lot of games and especially looked up to Iker Casillas, the former Real Madrid goalkeeper.

Until that point, Mumin had mainly seen his future as a goalkeeper. That changed when he saw the well-known Syrian referee Masoud Tufailiya officiating a game. Afterward, he approached him. 'I asked him, how does someone become a referee?' Not long after, Mumin gave up goalkeeping and began refereeing games himself. Before long, he was also refereeing adult games.

Refereeing turned out to be important not only on the football field. Mumin realised that he found working with rules interesting: 'As a referee, you get used to rules. You learn the rules and apply them. That is why I thought: I am going to study law.'

For Mumin, those two worlds went hand in hand. On the football field, he had to know the rules and make decisions. He carried that interest with him into his law studies. Alongside his studies, he worked for two and a half years at a law firm, handling cases in court and real estate matters, among other things.

Mumin continued to make strides as a referee as well. In 2023, he and 13 other referees from a Syrian refereeing academy were selected to attend a course in Doha, Qatar. Mumin was the only Palestinian in the group.

A problem arose when his travel documents were checked. Mumin did not have a Syrian passport, but rather a Syrian travel document for Palestinian refugees. As a result, he was ultimately unable to travel to Qatar.

That was an important moment for Moomin.

'That was kind of a wake-up call for me,' he says. 'After that, I thought: I do not have a future here.'

In addition to his plans for school and football, Mumin was also concerned about the possibility that he might have to serve in the military. He had to keep arranging for deferments. Without a valid deferment, he could be drafted.

Not long after the course in Qatar, Mumin decided to leave Syria. On his last day, he still went to work. At home, his family did not know that he would actually be leaving that evening.

'I told my mum I was going to a football game.'

That did not sound strange to his mum. Mumin spent almost every day playing football. He had wanted to have dinner with his family that evening, but that was no longer possible. He changed his clothes, took a shower, and left. It was not until he was already on his way that his family found out he had left Syria.

The journey to the Netherlands took more than six months. Along the way, Mumin broke his leg and had to undergo surgery.

He did not tell his parents at first, either. 'I only told my brother. I told him: do not tell my parents. They would just worry.'

It was not until three weeks after the surgery that he explained what had happened. It took several more weeks before he could walk well enough to continue his journey.

Munim tried to enter Croatia from Bosnia. He says that the Croatian police sent him and others back. People in his group were beaten, and Munim was robbed of his jacket and phone. In the end, he also had to provide his fingerprints in Croatia.

The Netherlands was his destination. Four of his uncles live here.

Even after his arrival in the Netherlands, the uncertainty was not over. Because Mumin had been required to provide his fingerprints in Croatia, the Netherlands could, under European rules, send him back to Croatia. Mumin calls that period 'a nightmare'.

In the end, he did not have to go back. After that, football came back into the picture too.

Mumin went with someone from the asylum seekers' center to FC Trias football club in Winterswijk. He watched from the sidelines. A Dutch man asked why he was not playing. A Syrian boy helped with the translation.

Mumin said that he was not a football player, but had been a referee in Syria for many years.

The man immediately grabbed his phone and called someone from the club who was in charge of the referees. Mumin was given the opportunity to referee a youth game.

'I did not even have a whistle. I asked if I could borrow one.'

After the game, Mumin showed the people at the club his certificates, photos and footage of matches in Syria on his phone. They could see just how much experience he already had.

After that, he took matters into his own hands. He gathered documents from Syria and contacted the

The KNVB accepted his documents and then wanted to see at what level Mumin could referee in the Netherlands. He was assigned a game during which an evaluator would come to observe him.

The first game in which Mumin was supposed to be evaluated was cancelled. When he stepped onto the field, it was covered in ice. Mumin thought it was too dangerous to let the players play.

'I told both teams: I cannot let the players play here. They are my responsibility.'

Shortly afterward, he was assigned to another game, this time at the top division level for players under 17. A KNVB evaluator was standing on the sidelines.

The game went well. The evaluator gave Mumin an excellent rating. After that, according to Mumin, he did not need to be re-evaluated and was assigned an official KNVB game every Saturday. In about three months, he refereed twelve games. Later, he also refereed Under-19 games.

'From that point on, I had a game every week.'

While Mumin was working, learning Dutch, and refereeing football games, he received a letter on 20 April 2026, from the

Mumin is Palestinian and grew up in Syria. He does not hold Syrian citizenship. The IND has no doubt about that, but believes he has not sufficiently demonstrated that he would be in personal danger if he returned to Syria.

Mumin says that while fleeing Syria, he was held captive by an armed group for ten days. He was questioned about who he was, where he came from, and why he, as a Palestinian, had come to the area. He says he was also beaten while he was there.

Even before he left, Mumin noticed that his Palestinian background could have an effect. On his way to university, he had to pass through several checkpoints. He was often stopped there and asked additional questions because he was Palestinian.

Mumin is now waiting for the final decision.

He still keeps track of what is happening in the area where he used to live because the situation there is still unstable and unsafe. There are still a lot of weapons around. According to him, a hand grenade was even used during a fight in his neighbourhood.

'For me, going back would be really hard.'

While he waits for the IND's decision, his daily life goes on as usual. Mumin keeps track of his appointments and obligations very carefully.

'Everything is in my planner. What I need to do tomorrow, what appointments I have. Otherwise, I lose track of things.'

If Mumin were to find out that he is allowed to stay in the Netherlands, he knows exactly what he would want to do first.

'The first thing I want to do is go to university.' Friends with whom he studied in Syria have now graduated. He himself was unable to finish his studies. 'I feel like I have wasted three years. My friends from college have now graduated.'