forced disappearance

noun

Secret abduction of a person by a state or non-state actor, which is denied by those responsible.

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Meanings

nounforced disappearance (countable and uncountable, plural forced disappearances)

plural forced disappearances · alternative enforced disappearance

  1. countableuncountableSecret abduction of a person by a state or non-state actor, which is denied by those responsible.

    Russian judges have halted new criminal proceedings for the jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny as supporters say he has not contacted his lawyers in nearly two weeks and a UN official has said his absence amounted to a “forced disappearance”.

    2023 December 18, Andrew Roth, “Russian courts halt cases against Alexei Navalny after jailed activist disappears”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
Cite this entry
APA

forced disappearance. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forced%20disappearance

MLA

“forced disappearance.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forced%20disappearance. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “forced disappearance,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forced%20disappearance.

Source: forced disappearance on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.