‘I’m going to build the life that I want, because it’s possible in Ireland’

In 2022, Nabil Battikha went to visit the Dublin university where his father had studied for his master’s in aircraft engineering 30 years ago. It was a source of pride for the 23-year-old to see his father, Emil Battikha, listed as the author of an article that is still read by the engineering students at UCD today.

When Battikha’s parents were living in Ireland, his older brother, Karam, was born, giving Karam Irish nationality. Three decades later Battikha and his mother, Antoinette Tayara, would leave Syria to join Karam in Dublin — Karam had come to Ireland six years previously — on a reunification visa.

Battikha and Tayara moved into the house Karam was renting in February 2019. The first issue Battikha experienced was the language. “It was really tough at the beginning to search for a job, to start studying anything, to communicate with people, to go out, to do literally anything here.”

While Battikha pushed himself to speak to Irish people, his English improved most from doing his favourite thing: playing video games. “I started playing games with English subtitles, and audio to get the pronunciation. Whenever I saw words I didn’t know I used a translator, so I improved my English and I have never been to a class.”

Video games were always a big part of Battikha’s life. “Since I was a kid, at three or four, I used to play with a joystick and play Nintendo Mario games. I used to spend a lot of time in front of the computer and my parents would always say, ‘You only have one hour today, two hours today’, because I spent so much time on them.”

Speaking to Battikha over a Zoom call from his home in Santry, it is clear he remains a serious gamer — multiple monitors, a gaming chair and headset are visible. “Whenever I start a game, I feel like I want to know what happens ... I want to finish this game, I want to understand the story,” he says. “I do love the challenge the game puts in front of the player.”

War is my past ... My past is in Syria, so whatever bad things happened in Syria don’t hurt me now

When it comes to games with storylines based on war, Battikha says that does not bother him. “War is my past ... My past is in Syria, so whatever bad things happened in Syria don’t hurt me [now]. I enjoy playing any video game ... It doesn’t give me trauma or PTSD, because I know I’m now in a safe country so I don’t have to worry about snipers and rifles, about bombing.”

Battikha was 11 when war began in Syria. By the age of 16, Battikha says, he started to register the danger around him more seriously. “We started to stay at home more, to stay in closed places, somewhere where bullets wouldn’t reach you.” He remembers how at certain times his family had to go a month without water, two months without electricity and a year and a half without internet.

He was already running a coffee shop in a building his father owned in Aleppo by the time he was 13. “I know I was too young for that,” he says, “but Syria really makes everybody very old.”

He remembers sitting outside the coffee shop one day when the phone rang inside and he went to answer it. He heard a loud cracking noise from the street and realised a bullet had hit the chair he had been sitting in.

Battikha tries not to focus on the bad memories he has from the war, but what bothers him most, he says, is thinking about the good memories he had in Syria: “I feel like these memories will never happen again because my friends are all over the world.”

Although the majority of people in Syria are Muslim, he is Christian.

It is difficult to adjust to the social scene in Ireland, says Battikha, because of the pub culture. “I used to drink a lot in Syria when I felt there was nothing to do and my whole life was ruined ... So, I got sick of that drinking life. When I came here I felt like: I’m going to do something. I’m not going to drink, I’m not going to waste time. I’m going to invest my time to build the life that I want because it’s possible here.”

I feel lucky about my education and my work. I always say I’m lucky in those two things

Battikha set about applying for jobs in gaming. He did odd jobs before landing a role as a video game tester at Keywords Studios, near Sandyford. After 1½ years with the company, Battikha is now a team leader.

His father and mother, who also holds a master’s degree, always stressed the value of education to their children. After failing his high school exam, all further education options were cut off from Battikha in Syria. Living in Ireland he had the opportunity to pursue education and, after interviews and exams, was accepted on to a diploma course in games development at Pulse College in Dublin 4.

He didn’t take his second chance for granted. He completed his diploma and also won an award from Epic Games, a video game and software developer, for one of his projects. He hopes to complete a bachelor’s degree and eventually become a video-game art director. “I feel lucky about my education and my work,” he says. “I always say I’m lucky in those two things.”

Becoming an Irish citizen is another goal. Irish nationality is “like having wings”, he says.

Battikha’s father stayed in Syria but was eager to visit his family in Ireland, a country that had remained important to him. However, he never got the chance to return to Dublin as he died two years ago while waiting for his visa. Battikha says he now feels more compelled than ever to work hard to honour his father’s legacy: “He wanted me to get a lot of education and so that’s what I’m doing.”

We would like to hear from people who have moved to Ireland in the past 10 years. To get involved, email newtotheparish@irishtimes.com or tweet @newtotheparish