Libyan survivors protest against authorities after flood disaster in Derna
Citizens have protested in Derna, demanding accountability one week after a flood killed thousands.
Hundreds of people have protested in the eastern Libyan city of Derna, venting anger against authorities and demanding accountability one week after a flood killed thousands of residents and destroyed entire neighbourhoods.
Protesters on Monday took aim at officials, including the head of the eastern-based Libyan parliament, Aguila Saleh, during the demonstration outside the city’s Al Sahaba Mosque. Some sat on its roof in front of its golden dome, a Derna landmark.
“Aguila we don’t want you! All Libyans are brothers!” protesters chanted, calling for national unity in a country left politically fractured by more than a decade of conflict and chaos.
Later in the evening, angry protesters set fire to the house of the man who was Derna mayor at the time of the flood, Abdulmenam al-Ghaithi, his office manager told the Reuters news agency.
Hichem Abu Chkiouat, a minister in the eastern Libyan government, said Ghaithi has been suspended from his post.
