Committee of Inquiry in the Fates of the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared

In 2000, the Lebanese Government, headed at the time by Prime Mister Salim El-Hoss, formed 'The Committee of Inquiry in the Fates of the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared' under the pressure of public protests organised by the families of victims of forced disappearance. Two other commissions were formed by consecutive Governments in 2001, and in 2005 in collaboration with the Syrian Government. The commissions recognized the existence of mass graves for the first time, but did not produce any information on the fate of the missing and forcibly disappeared. Referring to the Law 434, the commissions recommended that families can declare their missing family members deceased without evidence of their death or knowing the whereabouts of their remains. The law was rejected by the families of the victims, insisting on their right to know the truth.