Calls for answers in Libya as rescue efforts falter
A top Libyan official demanded an investigation late on Wednesday, three days after two dams collapsed, causing major floods that destroyed most of the city of Derna and ravaged other coastal towns, leaving thousands dead and thousands more missing.
Mohamed al-Menfi, the head of the Libyan Presidential Council, based in the divided country’s west, said in a social media post that “everyone who made a mistake or neglected either in abstaining or taking actions that resulted in the collapse of the dams in the city of Derna” would be held accountable.
It was unclear how an investigation would be conducted and how much accountability Libyans could hope to see in a country where infrastructure has been allowed to degrade as rival authorities have jockeyed for power for more than a decade.
As officials called for answers, the relief effort was faltering. Yesterday, the health minister for the eastern government said that the toll has risen to 3,065 documented dead. On Wednesday night, the mayor of Derna told the Al Arabiya television station that the death toll could reach 20,000, based on the number of districts wiped out.
A volunteer working in a relief effort said the response was unorganized and uncoordinated. “Unfortunately in Libya we suffer from a lack of crisis management. There is none.”
With many health facilities either out of service or overwhelmed, the W.H.O. said it was preparing an airlift with 28 tons of surgical and medical supplies to take off from Dubai in the next 48 hours.
What’s next: The Libyan authorities announced a joint operation room to oversee the response. The interior minister of the government in eastern Libya, Essam Abu Zeriba, explained the plan, saying the joint effort would work in cooperation with the security forces.
Drone footage offers a heart-wrenching look at what’s left of the city of Derna.
Putin will visit North Korea
President Vladimir Putin of Russia will visit North Korea, accepting an invitation from the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, the Kremlin said yesterday, after the two leaders held a summit in far eastern Russia on Wednesday.
North Korea has leveraged the war in Ukraine to elevate its standing with Russia. And to support its war effort against Ukraine, Moscow needs ammunition and military equipment, which North Korea has in abundance.
History turns upside down: Washington and Moscow flooded the Korean Peninsula with arms and aid during the Korean War, which never officially ended after a 1953 cease-fire. Both Koreas have since engaged in an arms race, and are now in a position to supply their former benefactors.
Other developments in the war:
Hunter Biden indicted on gun charges
Hunter Biden, President Biden’s son, was charged yesterday with three criminal counts connected to his illegal purchase of a handgun in 2018, a move that may put him on trial next year as his father runs for re-election.
The charges, which came after the last-minute collapse of a plea deal that would have shielded Hunter Biden from prison, are related to whether he lied about his drug use on a government form during the purchase. The indictment comes as House Republicans are stepping up their efforts to use Hunter Biden’s work abroad to build a case for impeaching his father.
For more: Hunter Biden, now 53, has acknowledged a decades-long addiction to alcohol and crack cocaine. Here’s a timeline of his life and legal troubles.
A close relationship: Despite the potential political fallout, allies of the president say his bond with his son is ironclad.
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