On September 21, 2022, a boat transporting about 150 persons sunk off near Arwad Island, beside the coast of Tartus, Syria. The boat was heading towards Europe from north Lebanon.
Search and rescue operations have confirmed that at least 70 people died. Early reports indicate that 20 survivors, who successfully swam to the shore, were transferred to the hospital in the city of Tartus, Syria, among whom Houblous.
On September 22, 2022, his family was able to visit him in al-Basel Hospital in Tartus. When his family met him, he was fine but seemed nervous because of the presence of members of security forces outside his hospital room.
The next morning, his wife went to the hospital to visit him again. However, she was surprised to learn that he was transferred to the military hospital in Tartus. She went there, but a security member refused to let her in and told her that “no one can see him anymore or contact him”. Since then, his family has had no information on fate and his whereabouts.
On September 26, 2022, Houblos’ family contacted the Lebanese head of the High Relief Commission, Major General Mohammad Khair. The next day, he told them that he had brought Houblos’ disappearance to the attention of the interim Prime Minister and the Director General of Public Security, among others.
On October 6, 2022, MENA Rights Group submitted an urgent appeal to the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) urging it to call on the Syrian authorities to clarify Houblos’s fate and whereabouts.
On November 30, 2022, the Syrian authorities handed over Houblos to the Lebanese authorities. The Lebanese authorities arrested him, as he did not carry any identity document after the boat sank. On December 1, 2022, Houblos was finally released.
