The Crisis Committee formed by the Government of National Unity (GNU) to deal with the repercussions of Storm Daniel, which struck areas in eastern Libya last week, held a meeting chaired by the Head of the Presidential Council, Mohammed Menfi, accompanied by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, in the presence of a number of ministers from the government emergency and rapid response team.
According to the Presidential Council, the attendees discussed the efforts of various agencies and institutions in dealing with the humanitarian crisis in the eastern region in general and in Derna and Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar in particular.
Menfi expressed his condolences to the families of the victims in the affected cities, stressing, that the "authorities are with them for the long run not just a period of time, with diligent work that develops and becomes more organized every day until Derna returns prosperous with its people, diversity, culture, and distinctive identity," calling on citizens in all parts of the country not pay attention to rumours.
Menfi also stressed that the reconstruction of Derna required real solutions and realistic as well as effective mechanisms that would include combating corruption and preventing the exploitation of crises or disrupting or seizing aid.
He said he had asked the Attorney General to open urgent investigations into the disaster and the need to deter corrupt people, pointing to the need for unified Libyan institutions and bodies to oversee the crisis and cooperate with international efforts, reiterating that institutional division "hinders rescue efforts and their effectiveness."
Menfi added that the High Finance Committee would hold its meeting soon, asking the government and its institutions to provide real, detailed estimates of the allocations for the affected cities according to a precise time plan, and voicing the need to enhance transparency through an international mechanism accompanying the work of the Committee.
He also pointed out that “the disaster is greater than our human and material capabilities, and we need international expertise and capabilities,” saying that he took a unilateral decision to request international relief assistance.
