Play video, “Floods tear through Libyan city of Derna”, Broadcast length 1,5201:52Video description,
Floods ravage the eastern Libyan port city of Derna
Article related informationReporter, Ape Walsh, BBC News
46 minutes ago
With Libya recently suffering great damage from major floods, the United Nations (UN) announced that the two rival governments ruling the country, divided into east and west, are cooperating to provide relief from flood damage.
The flood caused two dams to collapse in the eastern port city of Derna, killing more than 5,300 people, and at least 10,000 people are still missing. There are tens of thousands of people who have lost their homes.
A UN official explained that the two Libyan governments have requested help from the international community, and that the two governments are currently in contact with each other.
In an interview with the BBC Radio 4 program ‘World Tonight’, Tawoid Pasha of the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) said, “Both governments have asked for help from the international community.”
Pasha said,[리비아 서쪽의] The Government of National Unity (GNA) requested expanded support from us on behalf of all of Libya. “We are also cooperating with the eastern government,” he said.
He added, “The remaining task is for the international community to respond appropriately to the demands and needs of these governments.”
He explained that the international community must provide support “very, very quickly” and that “funds are needed for this.”
Meanwhile, in Libya, since the long-ruling Muammar Gaddafi regime collapsed in 2011, two competing governments have divided the country into east and west. In addition, a chaotic situation continues as various armed forces proliferate.
Among them, the government recognized by the international community is the Government of National Unity (GNA) in the west, currently led by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah, centered in Tripoli, the capital.
In the east, Prime Minister Osama Hamad is competing to lead another administration known as the Council of Representatives. However, many believe that Supreme Commander Khalifa Haftar, who leads the Libyan National Army (LNA), is the real power here.
Commander Haftar welcomed the Egyptian military delegation that offered aid after the floods.
image copyrightREUTERS
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Commander Khalifa Haftar, who took control of eastern Libya, exchanges greetings with Egyptian Army Commander-in-Chief Osama Askar.
image copyrightEPA
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Egypt is providing humanitarian aid supplies by air
Meanwhile, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said, “Now is the time when everyone’s goals must be unified,” and emphasized that all political groups must cooperate in response to this flood.
“Residents affected by this flood (regardless of which side they belong to) must receive support. In particular, we must pay attention to protecting vulnerable groups who are at greater risk in the face of such disasters.”
Meanwhile, Abdulkader Assad, political editor of the Libya Observer, pointed out that the country’s division, with the internationally recognized government competing with another government in the east, is acting as a hindrance to rescue efforts.
Editor-in-Chief Assad said, “As everyone knows, Libya has been divided into two governments for at least the past 10 years.” “I couldn’t lose,” he explained.
“However, as some regions are currently experiencing catastrophic natural disasters, I feel that the lack of a unified central government is having an impact on the lives of citizens.”
Meanwhile, the support the Libyan rescue team in Derna region has received from foreign countries is as follows:
Search and rescue teams dispatched from Egypt and Tunisia, about 160 personnel from Turkicye, and firefighting personnel from Italy and Spain.
Tomaso della Longa, spokesman for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), emphasized that time was running out to find survivors.
“Unfortunately, the window of opportunity (to find survivors) will close in the next few hours,” Della Longa said. But there is still hope,” he said.
He said, “It was like a bombing and an earthquake… “It seemed like it happened at the same time,” was the description of the Libyan Red Crescent team members at the scene.
“Our field team says the entire city is not intact, several villages have been completely destroyed and thousands of families are now in a truly desperate situation with nothing,” Della Longa added.
image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
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Türkiye provided three aircraft to Libya to transport rescue teams and relief supplies.
Meanwhile, Usama Al Husadi (52) is searching for his wife and five children in the aftermath of this devastating flood.
In an interview with Reuters, Al Husadi held his face in his hands and said, “I am walking around looking for my family… “He searched all hospitals and schools, but was in vain.”
In addition, Al Husadi added, “At least 50 of my father’s relatives are missing or dead.”
Meanwhile, according to the Egyptian Ministry of Immigration, the bodies of about 80 Egyptian immigrants who died in this flood were returned to Egypt and were buried in their respective hometowns.
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Site of flood damage, including bridge collapse
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2023-09-14 08:15:48
