BEIRUT // Adele Ghowsh's son has been missing for more than two decades, but she still believes he is alive in Syria.
He was taken from his home in coastal Lebanon's Chouf district by members of the Lebanese intelligence, Mrs Ghowsh said, before being handed to Syrian security forces and transferred to a Damascus prison.
That was in 1989 when Ali Al Haj was 22 years old. His mother, now 75, has not seen him since.
Last week it emerged that Yacoub Shamoun, one of the 17,000 Lebanese who disappeared since the start of the country's civil war in 1975, had been freed after spending 27 years in the Assad regime's prisons.
His release has given Mrs Ghowsh and other Lebanese families renewed hope that they may one day be reunited with lost relatives.
It also reignited calls to uncover the fate of hundreds of Lebanese believed to have been sent to Syrian prisons.
With Syria now in the grips of its own civil war, some of the families say they are now even more worried about relatives held in jails there.
Mrs Ghowsh has no concrete information about what happened to Ali. Her only leads have been from Lebanese prisoners released from Syrian jails in the past decade who said they saw or heard about her son while in prison.
"After Shamoun, hopefully Ali will be released too - alive," Mrs Ghowsh said. "It has given me more hope. I believe I will see my son again."
Mr Shamoun, 49, was released three months ago, but only recently decided to go public with the story of his arrest in 1985.
For 21 of the 27 years he was held, Mr Shamoun's family had no idea what had happened to him. When they finally made contact, they managed to hire a lawyer, according to Ghazi Aad, director of the Support of Lebanese in Detention and Exile (Solide) group, and his case was eventually transferred to a civil court, which acquitted him.
There have been previous cases of Lebanese citizens released by Syria, but few have spoken publicly about their experiences.
Mr Shamoun's release "has given hope to the families of those still missing of finding someone alive after 27 years", said Mr Aad.
Some of the missing are believed to have been arrested or captured by security forces and militias involved in Lebanon's civil war, including those from Lebanon, Syria, Israel and Palestinian groups. Some may have been killed in the violence, or simply disappeared.
After the war ended in 1990, arrests and disappearances continued, according to activists, who blame, among others, Syria, which maintained a 29-year military presence in Lebanon until 2005.
Based on information provided by families of the missing, Solide believes there are at least 600 Lebanese citizens who were captured and held in Syrian jails.
Mr Aad said that while Syrian authorities have long denied they are holding Lebanese detainees, there have been several instances where groups of people have been released and returned to Lebanon.
"The families just want to know from people released: 'Did you see my son, father, brother?'" Mr Aad said. "They live in agony and emotional torture all the time."
Mr Shamoun, who has said he was taken because of his membership of Lebanon's Christian Kataeb political faction, was moved from prison to prison during his incarceration, according to Mr Aad. He was freed from Hasaka jail in eastern Syria. Before he was moved to Hasaka, he was held in Saidnaya prison, just north of Damascus, where he came into contact with five other Lebanese inmates - three of whom were not on Solide's list of those believed to be held in Syria.
Lebanon's minister of justice, Shakib Qortbawi, said this week that he would be pushing for the establishment of a national commission for victims of enforced disappearance - something activists and families have wanted for several years.
"This will be a serious official mechanism to resolve the cases," said Mr Aad. "I hope the government will take it into consideration."
But, Mr Aad said, he hopes the situation will not be exploited for political purposes in a country whose deep divisions have only been exacerbated by the conflict in Syria.
Majida Bashasha sat among the family members of missing people at the purple tent in a park outside the United Nations offices in Beirut. Her brother Ahmed was 18 when he was taken by Syrian forces at a military checkpoint south of Beirut in 1976.
Like other relatives of the missing, Ms Bashasha said her family has heard of sightings of Ahmed in Syria giving her hope they will be reunited.
"I'm convinced he's still alive," she said. "I really wish to see him again. Inshallah I will."
zconstantine@thenational.ae
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Asia Cup 2018 final
Who: India v Bangladesh
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More on Quran memorisation:
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
PAST 10 BRITISH GRAND PRIX WINNERS
2016 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2015 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2014 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-GP)
2012 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2011 - Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
2010 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2009 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2008 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2007 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Aayan%E2%80%99s%20records
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20UAE%20men%E2%80%99s%20cricketer%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EWhen%20he%20debuted%20against%20Bangladesh%20aged%2016%20years%20and%20314%20days%2C%20he%20became%20the%20youngest%20ever%20to%20play%20for%20the%20men%E2%80%99s%20senior%20team.%20He%20broke%20the%20record%20set%20by%20his%20World%20Cup%20squad-mate%2C%20Alishan%20Sharafu%2C%20of%2017%20years%20and%2044%20days.%3Cbr%3E%20%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20wicket-taker%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EAfter%20taking%20the%20wicket%20of%20Bangladesh%E2%80%99s%20Litton%20Das%20on%20debut%20in%20Dubai%2C%20Aayan%20became%20the%20youngest%20male%20cricketer%20to%20take%20a%20wicket%20against%20a%20Full%20Member%20nation%20in%20a%20T20%20international.%3Cbr%3E%20%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20in%20T20%20World%20Cup%20history%3F%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EAayan%20does%20not%20turn%2017%20until%20November%2015%20%E2%80%93%20which%20is%20two%20days%20after%20the%20T20%20World%20Cup%20final%20at%20the%20MCG.%20If%20he%20does%20play%20in%20the%20competition%2C%20he%20will%20be%20its%20youngest%20ever%20player.%20Pakistan%E2%80%99s%20Mohammed%20Amir%2C%20who%20was%2017%20years%20and%2055%20days%20when%20he%20played%20in%202009%2C%20currently%20holds%20the%20record.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
The biog
Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives.
The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast.
As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau
He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker.
If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
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