A Libyan court has sentenced 12 officials to prison in connection with the collapse of several dams in Derna last year, which resulted in thousands of deaths, the Attorney General announced on Sunday. These officials, responsible for managing the country’s dams, received sentences ranging from 9 to 27 years from the Court of Appeal in Derna, while four officials were acquitted.
In September, Derna, a coastal city with a population of 125,000, was ravaged by massive floods caused by Storm Daniel. The floods led to the bursting of dams, sweeping away buildings, and destroying entire neighborhoods, resulting in thousands of deaths and missing persons.
According to a statement from the Attorney General in Tripoli, three of the defendants were ordered to “return money obtained from illicit gains,” although the names and positions of those on trial were not disclosed. A judicial source in Derna told Reuters that the convicted officials were charged with negligence, premeditated murder, and waste of public money, and have the right to appeal the verdicts.
A January report by the World Bank, United Nations, and European Union identified the deadly flash flooding in Derna as a climate and environmental catastrophe, requiring $1.8 billion for reconstruction and recovery. The report attributed the dams’ collapse to outdated design based on old hydrological data, poor maintenance, and governance issues stemming from over a decade of conflict in Libya.
Libya has been divided between rival power centers in the east and west since 2014, following the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi.
