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Libya: Powerful Military and Political Elites Must Face Justice Over Deadly Derna Floods - New Report
AI London, 11 March 2024
More than 4,000 people died, thousands more remain missing and nearly 45,000 people displaced following floods last September Authorities failed to issue adequate warnings ahead of… Read more »
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AI London, 11 March 2024
Six months after catastrophic floods in Derna killed at least 4,352 people, left thousands missing and displaced nearly 45,000 people, Libya's authorities have shied away from… Read more »
Amnesty Calls for Accountability in Libya After Deadly Floods
Six months after catastrophic floods in Derna, Libya, resulted in the death of at least 4,352 people and displaced thousands, Amnesty International reports a lack of accountability and justice from Libyan authorities.
A new report, "In seconds everything changed": Justice and redress elusive for Derna flood survivors highlights the fact that both the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity (GNU) and the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF), in de facto control of disaster-hit areas, failed to issue adequate warnings and take other key risk mitigation measures ahead of Storm Daniel, which triggered the collapse of two dams upstream from Derna.
The report highlights a crackdown on dissent, arbitrary arrests, and ongoing trials of lower-ranking officials, raising concerns about impunity for higher-ranking individuals.
Amnesty International calls on the international community to support efforts for an international mechanism to investigate and monitor human rights abuses in Libya, saying that the an urgent need for accountability in the fragmented political landscape.
Documents
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11 March 2024
“In seconds everything changed”: Justice and Redress Elusive for Derna flood survivors
- Publisher:
- Amnesty International
- Publication Date:
In September 2023, the city of Derna in eastern Libya witnessed unprecedented and catastrophic flooding after Storm Daniel - an extreme weather event made more likely and intense by global warming - triggered the collapse of two ageing dams upstream from Derna. The torrents of water killed at least 4,352 people, left thousands of others missing, washed entire neighbourhoods into the sea, and devastated the lives of tens of thousands of survivors who lost their loved ones, homes and livelihoods. Six
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InFocus
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Humanitarians delivering aid in the wake of Libya's "unprecedented" flood disaster centred on the coastal city of Derna, have reached more than 146,000 in need, said the head of the UNnited Nations (UN) support mission there.
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Briefing the Security Council, Abdoulaye Bathily noted the thousands of lives lost by the dam bursts which destroyed whole neighbourhoods after Storm Daniel slammed the region on 10 September.
The Special Representative told
InFocus
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Extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, and heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense, and they are causing significant damage to roads, power grids, and other vital infrastructure. This damage is disrupting essential services, costing economies billions of dollars, and displacing millions of people.
Two recent disasters in Morocco and
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UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has called on all Libyan political actors to overcome political deadlocks and divisions and collectively ensure relief access.
The number of deaths in the Libyan city of Derna could range from 18,000 to 20,000 after the catastrophic event, according to the city's mayor.
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