(Agence France Presse) Qawthar Shihab Ahmed fervently hopes her brother, who she said was seized in Baghdad in 2007 by men in police uniforms, is being held in a secret prison -- probably the only hope that he is still alive.
Her brother Arkan is just one of thousands of Iraqis still missing from the past 10 years of conflict. Some were hauled off as relatives watched, while others disappeared in unknown circumstances.
"We hope, oh Lord, God willing, God willing ... he is in the secret prisons," Qawthar said, referring to secret government detention facilities that have been detailed by human rights groups, although authorities have denied their existence.