More than 200,000 people were killed during Guatemala's 36-year civil war between the military and left-wing rebels which ended in 1996.

Of these, an estimated 45,000 people were forcibly disappeared, their bodies buried in unmarked pits.

Jeremias Tecu's two brothers were among the disappeared.

They went missing after a family party in 1981.

Jeremias tells Vicky Farncombe how his mother put herself in danger trying to find out what happened to them.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

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You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.

(Photo: Jeremias Tecu. Credit: Jeremias Tecu)

Guatemala's disappeared

Witness History