Last year, some 437 Syrian refugees in Germany received financial support from government authorities to facilitate their return home. The German authorities do not encourage Syrian citizens in any way to leave voluntarily, however, will present returnees with financial support whence they decide to return, an official statement revealed, adding that Germany will maintain this approach. The response came upon a request from the left-wing parliamentary bloc that, according to the decision of the Interior Ministers Conference held on November 30, Syrians wont be sent home against their will. Two weeks ago, US magazine Foreign Policy reported about the persecution of Syrian returnees. In one case, a Palestinian refugee from Syria who was living in Germany returned to Syria with financial support after his attempts to reunite with his fiancé had failed. Family reunification is only possible for refugee couples who were married before flight. According to reports by a relative, the Palestinian was summoned by secret service agents upon his arrival in Damascus and has not been seen since. In another case, a Palestinian on his way to reunite with his wife in Syria disappeared at the Lebanese-Syrian border. Left parliamentarian Ulla Jelpke slammed German policies on family reunification as restrictive, saying that refugees were driven into despair. "Many of them have only two options: to continue being separated from their loved ones or to return to their families, and therefore to return to conflict and persecution, risking their lives." The Green party called for a profound return counseling for every Syrian who wishes to return. "If it turns out the person only wants to go back because family reunification is stalling, the case has to be examined more closely," said Green parliamentarian Franziska Brantner. The International Organization for Migration IOM currently does not support a voluntary return to Syria. Civilians in Syria continue to face severe threats, the IOM said in a statement. The following notice is given on the platform "Returning from Germany", a service website run by Germanys BAMF: "Due to the present difficult security situation in Syria, Arab Republic, voluntary return through IOMs return assistance programs REAG/GARP and StarthilfePlus are all currently not possible. The IOM has a duty of ensuring the safe return of migrants to their country of origin. Currently, this cannot be guaranteed in the case of a return to Syria, Arab Republic." As of 2019, the German government offers financial assistance to nationals who want to return to Eritrea, Libya or Yemen. So far no requests have been submitted DPA reports.