43,000 people have been displaced from Terna and its environs due to water shortages, and officials refuse to monitor infectious diseases. news

The International Organization for Migration reported that more than 43,000 people have been displaced as a result of the devastating floods in eastern Libya, particularly in the city of Derna, after the passage of Storm Daniel on the evening of Sunday, September 10. The organization affirmed that the urgent needs of the United Nations displaced include food, fresh water, mental health, and the provision of support, psychological and social.

It comes as efforts to recover bodies and clear debris from affected areas continue to struggle and hopes of finding survivors dwindle.

According to the United Nations-affiliated international organization, the tragedy in eastern Libya has displaced 43,059 people, with about 24,500 displaced from the city of Terna alone. About 3,000 people were displaced from Al-Bayda town. More than 2,780 people fled their homes due to flooding in the city of Benghazi. About two thousand people fled their homes in al-Abraq, and about 1,500 each in al-Marj and Dogra.

The international organization pointed out in its report that many of the displaced within Terna had to travel to other cities in the east and west of the country due to lack of water supply.

Tawhid Basha, the director of the International Organization for Migration in Libya, told Al Jazeera that Derna was no longer a livable city and that the needs of its residents had to be followed and that relief agencies were working to assess the needs. Terna residents to meet them.

The catastrophic floods led to the death of 3,351 people, according to the provisional official count announced by the Minister of Health in the parliament-appointed government, Othman Abdel Jalil, on Tuesday evening. However, the United Nations indicated that the number of victims exceeded 11,300, excluding the 10,100 missing.

Humanitarian organizations and Libyan authorities fear the death toll could be much higher as the number of missing continues to rise.

The medical and emergency center in Derna said the task force began searching for bodies in several locations in the city, including Wadi al-Kafta and its neighboring valleys east of Derna and to the sea. This comes after authorities announced the division of the city into affected areas to facilitate the work of rescue teams.

The center said local and international rescue and diving teams removed a group of cars that had been swept away by currents inside the docking area of ​​Terna port.

Health status

For his part, Othman Abdel Jalil, the health minister of the parliament-appointed government, said the health situation in Derna city is stable amid global efforts to mitigate the impact of the disaster. Abdul Jalil insisted on the use of sound scientific methods in dealing with the disaster, denying that any infectious diseases had been detected.

The Al-Monitor website cited the International Organization for Migration as saying that the catastrophic floods in Libya destroyed entire neighborhoods, and water swept countless thousands of residents into the sea, while a lack of clean water supplies forced many displaced people to flee. Terna for other areas.

The website cited the United Nations as saying that local authorities, aid agencies and the World Health Organization are concerned about the risk of disease transmission, particularly due to contaminated water and unsanitary conditions.

Rescuers are continuing their efforts to find the bodies of the missing, especially in the sea, after the flood swept away all the neighborhoods.

On Thursday, the National Unity Government in Tripoli announced that the bodies had been found in an area of ​​about 100 kilometers between Terna and al-Bayda in the west. The government said it had provided relief services with a map of where the bodies were located to recover the bodies.

Communications networks and the internet were blacked out on Tuesday evening, and journalists were asked to leave the affected city the day after a demonstration by Terna residents demanding that authorities in the east of the country be held accountable. to disaster.

Officials spoke of an “optical fiber cut”, but according to analysts and internet users, the cut was deliberate and aimed at imposing a “blackout” after extensive media coverage of the demonstration the previous day.

American visit

Meanwhile, General Michael Langley, commander of the US Africa Command, and Richard Norland, the US ambassador to Libya, on Thursday delivered 13 tons of aid to Benghazi, the largest city in eastern Libya. The Agency for International Development (USAID), specifically, includes items such as personal hygiene and emergency shelter, according to the US Embassy.

Langley and Norland later met with Haftar. During the meeting, the US general “stressed the importance of forming a democratically elected national government, reintegrating the Libyan army and protecting Libya’s sovereignty by eliminating foreign mercenaries,” the same source said.

On the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs Barbara Leaf said in an interview with Al Jazeera that Washington would continue to provide aid to flood-affected areas in Libya.

In Tripoli, Libya’s highest institutions yesterday, Thursday, discussed ways to coordinate efforts to deal with the humanitarian crisis in the affected areas in the east of the country, especially in the city of Terna, which was hit hard by floods.

This happened during a meeting between the Vice Chairman of the Presidential Council, Abdullah Al-Labi, the Chairman of the Supreme Council of State, Muhammad Takala, and the Chairman of the Government of National Unity, Abdul Hamid, at the Prime Minister’s Office in the Libyan capital. According to two separate statements by Al-Tabaiba, the Presidential Council and the Unity Government.

The Presidential Council said in its statement that the meeting reviewed ongoing rescue and relief operations in Derna city and other flood-damaged cities in eastern Libya.

According to the report, the organization of humanitarian efforts to contribute to mitigating the effects of the disaster was ensured, and specialized local, Arab and international teams working in the affected areas were enabled to carry out their work successfully.

In particular, the Government of National Unity explained in its statement that the meeting discussed ways to coordinate efforts to address the humanitarian crisis facing Terna and all affected areas.

According to a government statement, participants emphasized the need to overcome difficulties to ensure that relief aid reaches flood and flood-affected people.

In this context, Al-Tabaiba pointed out during the meeting the importance of uniting and coordinating efforts to alleviate the sufferings of the people in the affected areas.

He also emphasized the need to provide relief to the people of Terna to restore their lives and to address the internal displacement crisis. Report.

For his part, the spokesman of the National Unity Government, Muhammad Hamouda, said experts and an assessment team of the Criminal Investigation Service identified 95 places where private and public properties were damaged within the city of Derna.