Boutros Khawand ( ar, بطرس خوند, born 1940 in
Kattin) was a member of the political bureau of the
Lebanese Kataeb party
The Kataeb Party ( ar, حزب الكتائب اللبنانية '), also known in English as the Phalanges, is a Christian political party in Lebanon. The party played a major role in the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990). In decline in the lat ...
and one of the cofounders of its military council in 1975. He was kidnapped in front of his house in
Horch Tabet on September 15, 1992.
Background
Boutros Khawand began his political career in the Kataeb party in 1956. He held several key positions within the party in which he was one of the co-founders. In 1976, he became the confident of the elected Lebanese president
Bachir Gemayel
Bachir Pierre Gemayel ( ; 10 November 1947 – 14 September 1982) was a Lebanese militia commander who led the Lebanese Forces, the military wing of the Kataeb Party in the Lebanese Civil War and was elected President of Lebanon in 1982. ...
. In 1982, Khawand was elected to the presidency of the Military Council and the political bureau of the Kataeb party (the largest Christian party in the middle east), He held the latter position until his kidnapping on September 15, 1992. He was known to have a strong and well respected relations with all Lebanese leaders specially with president
Amine Gemayel
Amine Pierre Gemayel ( ar, أمين بيار الجميٌل ; (born 22 January 1942) is a Lebanese Maronite politician who served as President of Lebanon from 1982 to 1988.
Born in Bikfaya, his father was Pierre Gemayel, the founder of the K ...
as well as the president of the Lebanese forces (Dr.
Samir Geagea
Samir Farid Geagea ( ar, سمير فريد جعجع Lebanese pron.: , also spelled Samir Ja'ja'; born 25 October 1952) is a Lebanese politician and militia commander who has been leading the Lebanese Forces party and dissolved militia ...
).
Kidnapping
On September 15, 1992, at 9:10 AM, Khawand was heading to the Kataeb Party headquarters in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
when his car was intercepted by two BMW cars and one red van, 1 km away from his home. Between eight and ten gunmen were in the attacking squad. They pulled him out of his car and forced him into the van and rushed him to an unknown destination. It is known at the time that the Syrian military ruled Lebanon with a strong presence in the area where Khawand was abducted.
Captivity
It is widely believed that he is still alive in one of the
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
n jails, most probably in
Tadmor prison
Tadmor prison ( ar, سجن تدمر) was located in Palmyra (''Tadmor'' in Arabic) in the deserts of eastern Syria approximately 200 kilometers northeast of Damascus.
Tadmor prison was known for harsh conditions, extensive human rights abuse, to ...
or in the "Sab'h Bahrat" (Seven Seas) prison controlled by the
Syrian Air Force
)
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 16 October
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
, battles = * 1948 Arab-Israeli War
* Six-Day War
* Yom Kippur War
...
intelligence service
An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objectives.
Means of informatio ...
, although some reports stated that he was later transferred to
Al-Hasakah prison.
Fate
On 18 September 2021,
Abbas Ibrahim promised to uncover the fate of Boutros Khawand.
[https://www.lbcgroup.tv/news/d/latest-news/609051/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%87%D9%8A%D9%85-%D9%84%D9%80-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D8%B1-%D9%85%D9%84%D9%81-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B9%D8%AA%D9%82%D9%84-%D8%A8%D8%B7%D8%B1%D8%B3-%D8%AE%D9%88%D9%86%D8%AF/ar]
See also
*
Kataeb Regulatory Forces
The Kataeb Regulatory Forces – KRF ( ar, قوى الكتائب النظامية, translit=Quwwāt al-Katāʾib an-Niẓāmiyyah) or Forces Regulatoires des Kataeb (FRK) in French, were the military wing of the right-wing Lebanese Christian Ka ...
*
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...
*
Lebanese Forces
The Lebanese Forces ( ar, القوات اللبنانية '')'' is a Lebanese Christian-based political party and former militia during the Lebanese Civil War. It currently holds 19 of the 128 seats in Lebanon's parliament and is therefore th ...
*
Lebanese Forces (Militia)
*
List of kidnappings
The following is a list of kidnappings summarizing the events of each individual case, including instances of celebrity abductions, claimed hoaxes, suspected kidnappings, extradition abductions, and mass kidnappings.
Before 1900
1900–1949
...
*
List of Lebanese in Syrian Jails
This is a list of hundreds of Lebanese citizens believed to be illegally imprisoned in Syria.
List of Lebanese detained in Syrian prisons
Syrian Response
In 2000, Syria released 54 Lebanese political prisoners, which according to the Syria ...
*
List of people who disappeared
Lists of people who disappeared include those whose current whereabouts are unknown, or whose deaths are unsubstantiated. Many people who disappear are eventually declared dead ''in absentia''. Some of these people were possibly subjected to enfo ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khawand, Boutros
1940 births
1990s missing person cases
Kataeb Party politicians
Kidnapped Lebanese people
Missing people
Missing person cases in Lebanon
Lebanese Forces politicians