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A/HRC/25/65 37 5. The practice of forcibly disappearing persons is prohibited under customary international humanitarian law, binding all parties to the conflict in Syria. The definition of an enforced disappearance is set out in the United Nations Declaration for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which crystalises custom. Under international human rights law, an act of enforced disappearance is committed by agents of the State or by persons or groups of persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the State, thus resulting in a human rights violation. In the context of international humanitarian law, this requirement must be interpreted to include agents of non-State actors, in order for this prohibition to retain significance in situations of non-international armed conflict such as Syria. 6. Under international human rights law, the prohibition of enforced disappearances is a non-derogable State responsibility. No legitimate aim or exceptional circumstances may be invoked to justify the practice of enforced disappearance. When perpetrated as part of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population, with the intent of removing a person from the protection of the law for a prolonged period of time and pursuant to or in furtherance of a State or organizational policy, enforced disappearances can amount to a crime against humanity incurring individual criminal responsibility. Enforced disappearances are continuing human rights violations and crimes, persisting for many years after the initial deprivation of liberty. 7. The Criminal Code of the Syrian Arab Republic does not criminalise enforced disappearances as an autonomous crime. Any act of enforced disappearance violates a number of fundamental rights enshrined in the 2012 Syrian Constitution, the Arab Charter on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Syria is party. These rights include the right to liberty and security of persons, the right not to be arbitrarily detained, the right not to be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, the right to a fair trial and the right of all persons deprived of their liberty to be treated with humanity and with the inherent dignity of the human person. Enforced disappearances also violate and imperil the right to life. 8. Enforced disappearance, by definition, requires an absence of information about the fate or whereabouts of a loved one. Investigating this violation presents unique challenges as physical evidence is elusive or entirely absent. It can be years before the fate of the disappeared person comes to light, if ever. The truth regarding the fate of the many disappeared in Syria and the extent of the phenomenon of enforced disappearance will likely only fully be grasped in the aftermath of the conflict. 9. The victims of this violation number far beyond the individuals disappeared. The families and loved ones of those disappeared endure a mental anguish that amounts to a further violation of their human rights. It is a continuous violation that remains unabated until the fate of the disappeared is uncovered. To forcibly disappear a person is to negate their being and deny their relatives’ right to know the truth. II. The deprivation of liberty: a targeted campaign 10. Enforced disappearances have been carried out since the beginning of the uprising in Syria. Most disappearances were perpetrated by intelligence and security officers, as well as by the Syrian army, sometimes in conjunction with pro-government militias acting on behalf of the Government. In all the cases documented, the perpetrators operated with impunity. 11. The violation of enforced disappearance is often a gateway to the commission of other offences, most particularly torture. Survivors of enforced disappearances consistentl