IOM: At Least 43,059 People Displaced by Libya Floods

People sit among the rubble in Libya's eastern city of Derna on September 20, 2023, following a deadly flash flood. (Photo by Abu Bakr AL-SOUSSI / AFP)
People sit among the rubble in Libya's eastern city of Derna on September 20, 2023, following a deadly flash flood. (Photo by Abu Bakr AL-SOUSSI / AFP)
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IOM: At Least 43,059 People Displaced by Libya Floods

People sit among the rubble in Libya's eastern city of Derna on September 20, 2023, following a deadly flash flood. (Photo by Abu Bakr AL-SOUSSI / AFP)
People sit among the rubble in Libya's eastern city of Derna on September 20, 2023, following a deadly flash flood. (Photo by Abu Bakr AL-SOUSSI / AFP)

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Thursday at least 43,059 people have been displaced by severe floods in northeastern Libya.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the IOM added that the lack of clean water supplies appeared to be driving many displaced people out of Derna to municipalities to the east and west of the Mediterranean city.

The country’s chief prosecutor, meanwhile, vowed to take “serious measures” to deliver justice for the victims of the floods, which devastated Derna more than a week ago.

Thousands of people were killed, with many dead still under the rubble or at sea, according to search teams. Government officials and aid agencies have given varied death tolls ranging from about 4,000 to over 11,000.

Local authorities said they have isolated the worst damaged part of Derna amid growing concerns about potential infection by waterborne diseases. Health authorities have launched a vaccination campaign that initially targeted search and rescue teamed along with children in Derna and other impacted areas.



Hamas Claims Attack on Israeli Bus in West Bank That Wounded 8 People, Including 4 Soldiers

Four people suffered bullet wounds, three of them serious, and four others were lightly injured by shards of glass, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service - AFP
Four people suffered bullet wounds, three of them serious, and four others were lightly injured by shards of glass, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service - AFP
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Hamas Claims Attack on Israeli Bus in West Bank That Wounded 8 People, Including 4 Soldiers

Four people suffered bullet wounds, three of them serious, and four others were lightly injured by shards of glass, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service - AFP
Four people suffered bullet wounds, three of them serious, and four others were lightly injured by shards of glass, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service - AFP

Hamas claimed responsibility for a shooting attack on an Israeli bus in the occupied West Bank on Friday that wounded eight people, including four soldiers.

It was the latest violence to scar the territory as tensions run high 14 months into the Israel-Hamas war.

The attacker, who Hamas identified in a statement as Samer Hussein, 46, was killed by Israeli troops shortly after opening fire toward the bus at a junction near the Israeli settlement of Ariel.

The military said four soldiers were lightly wounded. Paramedics said three people were critically wounded.

Attacks by Palestinian fighters on Israelis in the volatile territory have grown more common since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, as Palestinian deaths have also spiked.  

Israeli fire has killed 796 Palestinians since Oct. 7, 2023, mostly in military raids on Palestinian cities and towns. Attacks by settlers on Palestinians and their property have also increased.