Khalifa Haftar and Libyan National Army militia said to be overseeing humanitarian relief arriving in city of Derna Ruth micharlson
Sun 17 Sept 2023 10.19 EDTFollow Ruth Michaelson
As search and rescue teams continue to hunt for bodies trapped underneath the mud and rubble of their homes in the Libyan coastal city of Derna, observers say the warlord Khalifa Haftar and his sons are using the disaster responas a way to exert control rather than ensure vital humanitarian relief reaches civilians.
At least 11,300 people have died and more than 10,000 are missing, according to the Libyan Red Crescent, after two dams burst during a powerful storm last week.‘Towns were erased’: Libyan reporters on the ‘horrifying, harrowing’ aftermath of floodsRead more
The resulting floods have completely destroyed almost 900 buildings in Derna, according to the country’s National Unity government, based in the north-western city of Tripoli. More than 200 buildings were partly damaged and almost 400 others were completely submerged in mud, it added, meaning that a quarter of all buildings in Derna had been affected by the flooding.
