Enforced disappearance, the prohibition of which is a jus cogens norm, represents a grave threat to life. The key elements in an enforced disappearance are the detention or abduction of an individual, followed by a refusal to acknowledge his or her whereabouts and confirm his or her well-being. In any enforced disappearance in which it was involved, a State is likely to be found to have violated the duty to protect life as well as other rights, such as the prohibition of torture or other inhumane treatment or punishment, the rights to liberty and security of person, and the right to recognition as a person before the law.