Horror in Libya as body of young girl found in flooding aftermath – as UN official warns of cholera outbreak risk

Published

2 years ago

September 15, 2023

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A potential cholera outbreak could add to misery in the Libyan city of Derna, where the sheer number of people dead or unaccounted for after a massive flood is overwhelming survivors.

The number of fatalities has soared to 11,300, according to the Libyan Red Crescent, with a further 10,100 reported missing as hopes of finding survivors diminish.

Two Sky News TV crews witnessed horrific scenes after reaching the eastern port city – including the tragic discovery of the body of a young girl, perhaps aged 10 or 11.

Desperate search for survivors continues – latest updates

The United Nations (UN) has warned the country urgently needs equipment to find those trapped in sludge and wrecked buildings – and raised concerns of a cholera outbreak.

“Priority areas are shelter, food, key primary medical care because of the worry of cholera, the worry of lack of clean water,” said UN aid chief Martin Griffiths.

Reports suggest almost a quarter of the city has been washed away and reduced to an apocalyptic wasteland, following a massive flood fed by the breaching of two dams in heavy rains.

More than 38,640 people are displaced in the northeast of the country, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Libya said on Friday.

‘Graveyard’ city smashed by water from ‘dam of death’

Sky’s Africa correspondent Yousra Elbagir, reporting from one of the collapsed dams, said it is now known as “the dam of death“.

Although it has been days since the disaster struck, she said survivors are still in a complete state of shock – with some coming to the site to look at the catastrophe.

“The flood has completely changed their lives,” she said. “One person told me: ‘This is not a natural disaster, this is a catastrophe.'”

Sky News will air a special programme – Libya floods: The city swept away – at midday on Saturday.

Sky News special correspondent Alex Crawford, reporting from the centre of Derna, said the city was like “one big graveyard”.

“Everywhere you look here – it’s 360° destruction,” she said. “There is a strong smell in the air of corpses.”

“The force of the water was so strong from the two dams which collapsed that the locals say it sounded like an explosion, after explosion, after explosion,” said Crawford.

“Massive tonnes of rocks, whole apartment blocks, were just swept away.

“There are three bridges that have been swept away.

“Building after building has been levelled or smashed through.

“They had – according to those who survived – about 20 minutes to get out of the way of this torrent of water.”

‘Someone should pay for these deaths’ after girl’s body found

There was a collective intake of horror when the “unmistakable shape of a small human” was discovered, Crawford added.

It was the body of a young girl – maybe aged 10 or 11.

Witnesses were stunned into silence, she said, describing it as “utterly dreadful”.

Two relief workers raced down with a black body bag and the girl was hurriedly placed inside it.

People searching for relatives say they had plenty of warning about Storm Daniel before it hit.

But what followed was a catastrophic culmination of human errors.

Gandi Mohammed Hammoud, a structural engineer, said it was down to negligence.

He said there had been plenty of warnings from experts about the poor state of the city’s two dams.

“They should have known,” he told Sky News.

Mr Hammoud said he watched as his neighbours and friends screamed in terror as the torrent of water tore apart their homes and flats.

He added: “Someone should pay for these deaths.

“Someone should be held accountable for what happened here.”

Officials have warned unexploded ordnances – remnants of war such as unexploded bombs, mines, shells and grenades – pose a risk for those involved in recovering the dead.

‘Bodies are littering the streets’

Most of the dead have been buried in mass graves outside Derna, while others are being transferred to nearby towns and cities.

“Bodies are littering the streets, washing back on shore and are buried under collapsed buildings and debris. In just two hours, one of my colleagues counted over 200 bodies on the beach near Derna,” said Bilal Sablouh, regional forensics manager for Africa for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

The ICRC has sent a cargo flight to Benghazi with 5,000 body bags.

Rescue and relief operations have also been complicated by political divides in the country, which has been at war since a 2011 uprising toppled long-ruling dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

Despite a 2020 ceasefire ending most major warfare, territory remains controlled by rival armed factions.

An internationally recognised Government of National Unity (GNU) is based in Tripoli, in the west, while a parallel administration operates in the east, including Derna.

“The instability, poor governance, corruption and mafia-style politicking, including a network of people-smuggling gangs, have all conspired to make this tragedy,” Crawford added.

World

Trump’s USAID cuts could lead to 14 million deaths, report warns

Published

4 hours ago

July 1, 2025

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Trump's USAID cuts could lead to 14 million deaths, report warns

Around 14 million people could die across the world over the next five years because of cuts to the US Agency for International Development (USAID), researchers have warned.

Children under five are expected to make up around a third (4.5 million) of the mortalities, according to a study published in The Lancet medical journal.

Estimates showed that “unless the abrupt funding cuts announced and implemented in the first half of 2025 are reversed, a staggering number of avoidable deaths could occur by 2030”.

“Beyond causing millions of avoidable deaths – particularly among the most vulnerable – these cuts risk reversing decades of progress in health and socioeconomic development in LMICs [low and middle-income countries],” the report said.

USAID programmes have prevented the deaths of more than 91 million people, around a third of them among children, the study suggests.

The agency’s work has been linked to a 65% fall in deaths from HIV/AIDS, or 25.5 million people.

Eight million deaths from malaria, more than half the total, around 11 million from diarrheal diseases and nearly five million from tuberculosis (TB), have also been prevented.

USAID has been vital in improving global health, “especially in LMICs, particularly African nations,” according to the report.

Established in 1961, the agency was tasked with providing humanitarian assistance and helping economic growth in developing countries, especially those deemed strategic to Washington.

But the Trump administration has made little secret of its antipathy towards the agency, which became an early victim of cuts carried out by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) – formerly led by Elon Musk – in what the US government said was part of a broader plan to remove wasteful spending.

In March, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said more than 80% of USAID schemes had been closed following a six-week review, leaving around 1,000 active.

The US is the world’s largest humanitarian aid donor, providing around $61bn (£44bn) in foreign assistance last year, according to government data, or at least 38% of the total, and USAID is the world’s leading donor for humanitarian and development aid, the report said.

Between 2017 and 2020, the agency responded to more than 240 natural disasters and crises worldwide – and in 2016 it sent food assistance to more than 53 million people across 47 countries.

The study assessed all-age and all-cause mortality rates in 133 countries and territories, including all those classified as low and middle-income, supported by USAID from 2001 to 2021.

World

Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended amid outrage over leaked phone call

Published

7 hours ago

July 1, 2025

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Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended amid outrage over leaked phone call

Thailand’s prime minister has been suspended after a leaked phone call with a senior Cambodian politician caused outrage.

An ethics investigation into Paetongtarn Shinawatra is under way and she could end up being dismissed.

The country’s constitutional court took up a petition from 36 senators, who claimed dishonesty and a breach of ethical standards, and voted 7 to 2 to suspend her.

The prime minister’s call with Cambodia’s former leader, Hun Sen, sparked public protests after she tried to appease him and criticised a Thai army commander – a taboo move in a country where the military is extremely influential.

Ms Shinawatra was trying to defuse mounting tensions at the border – which in May resulted in the death of one Cambodian soldier.

Thousands of conservative, nationalist protesters held a demo in Bangkok on Saturday to urge her to step down.

Her party is clinging on to power after another group withdrew from their alliance a few weeks ago over the phone call. Calls for a no-confidence vote are likely.

Deputy prime minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit will take over temporarily while the court looks into the case.

The 38-year-old prime minister – Thailand‘s youngest ever leader – has 15 days to respond to the probe. She has apologised and said her approach in the call was a negotiating tactic.

The popularity of her government has slumped recently, with an opinion poll showing an approval rating of 9.2%, down from 30.9% in March.

Ms Shinawatra comes from a wealthy dynasty synonymous with Thai politics.

Her father Thaksin Shinawatra – a former Manchester City owner – and aunt Yingluck Shinawatra served as prime minister before her – in the early to mid 2000s – and their time in office also ended ignominiously amid corruption charges and military coups.

World

Benjamin Netanyahu to meet Donald Trump next week amid calls for Gaza ceasefire

Published

13 hours ago

July 1, 2025

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Benjamin Netanyahu to meet Donald Trump next week amid calls for Gaza ceasefire

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be meeting Donald Trump next Monday, according to US officials.

The visit on 7 July comes after Mr Trump suggested it was possible a ceasefire in Gaza could be reached within a week.

On Sunday, he wrote on social media: “MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!!”

At least 60 people killed across Gaza on Monday, in what turned out to be some of the heaviest attacks in weeks.

According to the Hamas-run health ministry, 56,500 people have been killed in the 20-month war.

The visit by Mr Netanyahu to Washington has not been formally announced and the officials who said it would be going ahead spoke on condition of anonymity.

An Israeli official in Washington also confirmed the meeting next Monday.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration was in constant communication with the Israeli government.

She said Mr Trump viewed ending the war in Gaza and returning remaining hostages held by Hamas as a top priority.

The war in Gaza broke out in retaliation for Hamas’ 7 October 2023 attacks on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw a further 250 taken hostage.

An eight-week ceasefire was reached in the final days of Joe Biden’s US presidency, but Israel resumed the war in March after trying to get Hamas to accept new terms on next steps.

Talks between Israel and Hamas have stalled over whether the war should end as part of any ceasefire.