Libyan prosecutors pledge justice following floods as UK aid package increased to £10 million
16 September 2023, 20:24 | Updated: 16 September 2023, 20:34
Libyan prosecutors have pledged to hold those responsible for the neglect of two dams in Derna to account, as aid packages - including a large number of body bags - arrived in the flooded nation.
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Thousands were killed in the country last Sunday after two dams burst in the wake of Storm Daniel.
Flood waters overwhelmed the two dams, sending a wall of water several metres high through the centre of Derna, destroying entire neighbourhoods and sweeping people out to sea.
The death toll remains unknown - with figures ranging from 6,000 to 11,000 - however, Derna's mayor has said he expects the total could eventually reach 20,000 fatalities.
Now, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said 29-metric-tonnes of health supplies have now landed in Benghazi, Lybia's second largest city.
Reports emerging from the country warn of disease, as bodies continue to wash up on the region's beaches.
"This is a disaster of epic proportions," said Dr Ahmed Zouiten, WHO's representative in Libya.
The newly arrived aid packages include essential medicines, trauma and emergency surgery supplies, and medical equipment.
The package is also set to include body bags to move and bury the dead, with the spread of disease a top priority.R
Read more: UK to be blasted by thunderstorms over the weekend as spell of warm weather comes to an end
It comes as the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said it had increased its aid package to Libya and Morocco to £10m.
The North African nation of Morocco saw thousands of deaths following a devastating earthquake on September 8.
So far more than 1,000 people have been buried in mass graves across the city.
