Imagine this horrifying scenario: Your father and brother get arrested by a foreign government. You believe they’re being tortured and forced to give false confessions. Soon, they’ll be facing a trial that could lead to a lifetime in prison, possibly even the death penalty. Amal Elderat, a 28-year-old Libyan-American is living this nightmare right now.

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Elderat grew up in California, but her family is from Misrata, Libya. Her father and brother are now on trial, possibly for life, in the United Arab Emirates, where they had been living and working. They are charged with aiding terrorists in Libya during Moammar Gadhafi’s regime. The family claims they were sending humanitarian aid to their hometown of Misrata during the uprising. They are being targeted, she says, because the UAE has backed fighters from a different part of Libya.

On his Shortwave podcast this week, P.J. Tobia reports on the story of how this Libyan family suffered under Moammar Gadhafi’s regime, and how after he was captured and killed, things got much, much worse.

Shortwave is a podcast that you listen to. With your ears.

The post How sending aid landed one Libyan family in prison appeared first on PBS NewsHour.