For years, the only “occupied” territories you heard about were Gaza and the West Bank. Syria’s brutal occupation of Lebanon was swept under the rug. But the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri — done with the involvement of Syrian officials at the highest levels — began a long overdue awakening. Evidence of Syria’s crimes against the Lebanese people was unearthed (literally) yesterday:

The remains of at least 20 bodies have been found in a grave in east Lebanon, near the former headquarters of the Syrian army intelligence, police say. …

The mass grave is near a former Syrian-run prison, where many Lebanese detainees were held.

Correspondents say dozens of Lebanese disappeared during Syria’s 29 years of military presence. …

Lebanese detainees on their way to Syrian jails passed through the prison and those who died under torture were buried on the site, the BBC’s Kim Ghattas reports from Beirut.

Another 24 bodies were found last month in a mass grave near the Lebanese ministry of defence, east of the capital.

Most of the bodies belonged to Lebanese soldiers who fought against the Syrian army at the end of Lebanon’s civil war in 1990.

Unfortunately, these graves are probably only the first of a long line of sites that will be found as Lebanese reclaim their sovereignty.