Canadian man's deceased mother shown in grisly video of alleged Libyan war crimes

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A BBC Arabic investigationhas uncovered dozens of videos on Facebook and YouTubethat depict gruesome violence in Libya including one that shows the desecration of aCanadian man's dead mother.

Now Ali Hamzaof Mississauga, Ont., is hoping the discovery will aid him in his quest to pursue justice against those he holds responsible for her death and the deaths of his four siblings.

"It's the public now who are seeing it. It's the world who are seeing it,"Hamza told As It Happens host Carol Off.

"We have been suffering alone for a very long time."

Hamzaleft Libya for Canada more than three decades ago, but his mother and siblings remained behind.

They lived in the militant-controlled Benghazi neighbourhood of Ganfouda,whichcame under siege in 2017 by the Libyan National Army (LNA) one of several factions vying for control of the country after the 2011 death of dictator MoammarGadhafi.

In February 2017, Hamzasold his SUV and travelled to Turkey with his wife and children to partner with NGOs trying toget food, water and medicine to the civilians trapped insideGanfouda.

But the precarious security situation kept the aid shipment on the ground.Soon after, he learned that his mother had been killed along withhissisters Faiza and Fahira, and his brothers Ibrahim and Mahmoud.

'We're living through it," he said. "We're in the pursuit of justice to protect life and to honour them."

Allegations of war crimes

Human Rights Watch and others called on LNAleader Khalifa Haftar to investigation allegations that those under his command have committed war crimes in the quest to control Libya,including attacks against civilians, summary executions, and the desecration of corpses.

It was the latter that BBC turned up evidence of online.

The public broadcaster says it unearthed more than 100 videos that appear show members of theLNAmutilating and desecrating the bodies of fighters and civilians, alike.

Desecrating the bodies of enemy combatantsis considered a war crime under international law.

One video shows a man who the BBC identifies as ZakariaFerkash a member of Hatar's elite special forces trampling over the bodies of civilians in the streets of Ganfouda.

One of those bodies isAalya Faleh Al-Derbali,Hamza's75-year-old mother.

"Canada is deeply concerned by the ongoing armed clashes in Libya and calls on all parties to de-escalate tensions and to respect their obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law," a representative from Global Affairs Canada told As It Happens in a statement.

The statement reiterated its concern "about the humanitarian crisis in Libya, which has disproportionately affected vulnerable groups such as internally displaced people, refugees and migrants," and called on parties to allow citizens to safely leave the conflict zones.

'That has got to stop'

Hamza says the blame for his family's deaths rest squarely onHaftar's shoulders.

For years, he has been entreating government officials and the International Criminal Court to prosecute Haftar for their deaths.

He says the military strongman who has the backing ofEgypt and the United Arab Emirates should be investigated for war crimes by the International Criminal Court, or by Canada under theCrimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act.

The latter would prove particularly difficult. While theWar Crimes Act applies to atrocities committed overseas, it can only be used to prosecute individuals who are insideCanada.

But Hamzasays it's time for Canada and the rest of the world to stand up againstHaftar.

"That has got to stop," Hamza said.

"He has some enablers who make him feel that he is above the law ... who made him feel that he can show show the mutilation of the dead and the insulting of the dead, including my mom who is 75 years old."

Written by Sheena Goodyear with files from Canadian Press.Interview with Ali Hamzaproduced by Allie Jaynes.