Residents see signs of a crackdown on dissent after Libya floods
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People who survived the deadly storm that hit Libya, protest outside the Al Sahaba mosque in Derna, Libya, on Sept 18, 2023.
PHOTO: REUTERS
CAIRO – The authorities in flood-devastated eastern Libya appeared to be moving to muzzle dissent over the past week, arresting protesters and activists who have demanded accountability for what they say was a botched official response to the catastrophe.
Torrential rains that burst two dams unleashed a flood Sept 11 that swept much of the coastal city of Derna and the surrounding areas, killing thousands.
At least three people who either publicly criticised the government response or participated in a protest in Derna on Monday have been detained, according to witnesses and a relative. Aid workers and journalists also say the authoritarian administration that controls the eastern half of divided Libya, which includes Derna, restricted access to the city for some.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, internet and cellphone services in the city were also shut down, raising questions about whether they were deliberately severed by operators.
“The level of anger among people is very high, and communications have been cut off because they’re afraid of people expressing their anger publicly,” said Mr Islam Azouz, a volunteer aid worker from Derna who attended the protest on Monday, where hundreds of people demanded that those responsible for the catastrophe be held to account.
“People lost their homes and their city. Of course they’re angry over the corruption and neglect that led to this disaster,” he added.
After Monday’s protest, some reporters for Arabic-language broadcast channels viewed widely across the Middle East said they were ordered out of Derna, while other journalists covering the rescue and relief operations said they were prevented from moving freely around the city or from reentering it once they had left.
Foreign rescue teams and other aid groups appeared to be operating as usual. But Mr Azouz said Wednesday that some civilian volunteer groups from the other side of Libya’s east-west divide had been told to leave.
The widespread confusion over access to Derna owed much to the disordered, divided and highly politicised state of Libyan institutions and media. Reliable information about the death toll and other basics was hard to come by even before the communications outage.
The World Health Organisation said on Wednesday that about 4,000 deaths had been registered in hospitals. But eastern administration officials have said the death toll is far higher. Some have estimated that as many as 11,000 people died, with thousands more missing. NYTIMES
