Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity

Special Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity
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Flash floods overturned vehicles and destroyed infrastructure in the Mediterranean coastal city of Derna, eastern Libya, on Sept. 10, 2023 (left) two days after a powerful earthquake in Morocco shook the Old City of Marrakech (right). (AFP photos)
Special Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity
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Jordanian soldiers prepare to load humanitarian aid on a plane at the Marka military airport in Amman on September 13, 2023, to be flown to Libya, where devastating flash floods killed at least 5,000 people and displaced at least 30,000 more. (AFP)
Special Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity
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Streets a flooded after storm Daniel in Marj, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2023. (Libya Almasar TV via AP)
Special Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity
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This image grab from handout video released by the Libyan Red Crescent on September 13, 2023 shows volunteers carrying a body bag during search operations after deadly floods in the east of the country. (The Libyan Red Crescent via AFP)
Special Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity
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Floodwaters from Mediterranean storm Daniel are visible in the Libyan coastal city of Derna on Sept. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Jamal Alkomaty)
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Updated 14 September 2023
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Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity

Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity
  • A 6.8 magnitude quake struck Morocco’s Atlas Mountains south of Marrakech on Friday, killing nearly 3,000
  • Two river dams burst on Sunday in Libya’s coastal city of Derna, killing at least 5,000, with thousands still missing

NAIROBI/LONDON: North Africa suffered two disasters in three days when a devastating earthquake struck Morocco on Friday, followed by catastrophic flooding in Libya on Sunday, leaving thousands dead and many more missing, sparking a global aid response.

On Friday night, a powerful earthquake, measuring 6.8 in magnitude, struck high in the Atlas Mountains about 70 km south of Marrakech, flattening whole villages, killing at least 2,900 people and leaving thousands more homeless.

In Morocco’s Al-Haouz province, isolated farming communities have been left cut off, with many fending entirely for themselves. It was the North African country’s deadliest earthquake since 1960 and its most powerful in more than a century.

Just as aid agencies and donor nations were rolling out their response to this catastrophe, another disaster was unfolding to the east in crisis-torn Libya, where Storm Daniel caused two river dams to burst on Sunday afternoon.

The enormous surge of water released by the dams tore through the Mediterranean coastal city of Derna, sweeping buildings, vehicles and people into the sea. The confirmed death toll surpassed 5,000 on Wednesday, with thousands more still unaccounted for.

“Libya’s situation is a roller coaster. We’ve been through so much — conflicts, political ups and downs, and now these floods adding to the chaos,” Mohammed Thabit, a Tripoli-based citizen journalist, told Arab News.

“But remember, we’re a resilient bunch. We’ve faced worse and we’ll keep pushing for a brighter tomorrow, no matter the challenges.”




This grab from a video published on the Facebook account of the Libyan Red Crescent on September 11, 2023, shows members of their team assisting drivers whose cars are engulfed in floods in al-Bayda town in eastern Libya. (Basma Badran, Libyan Red Crescent via AFP)

The city of Derna, 300 km east of Benghazi, is ringed by hills and bisected by what is normally a dry riverbed in summer, which became a raging torrent of mud-brown water that also swept away several major bridges.

Derna was home to about 100,000 people and many of its multistory buildings on the banks of the riverbed collapsed, with people, their homes and cars vanishing into the raging waters.




Emergency members work near a building destroyed when a powerful storm and heavy rainfall hit the city of Derna in Libya on September 12, 2023. (Screen grab from social media video by Ali M. Bomhadi/via REUTERS)

“In the face of these devastating floods in Libya, it’s a heartbreaker,” Thabit said. “Our dams got some funding, but it seems some folks ran off with the money instead of fixing things. Tough times, but we’re tougher.”

The Libyan Presidential Council has declared the cities of Derna, Shahat and Al-Bayda in Cyrenaica disaster zones and requested international support to confront the effects of the floods caused by the storm.

 

FASTFACTS

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck high in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains about 70 km south of Marrakech on Friday, killing at least 2,900 people.

In Libya’s coastal city of Derna, Storm Daniel caused two river dams to burst on Sunday, killing at least 5,000 people, with thousands still missing.

Offers of assistance for Libya and Morocco have come from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Tunisia and Turkiye.

Libya is in effect under the control of two rival administrations: the internationally recognized government in Tripoli and authorities based along with the parliament in the east.

“The humanitarian needs are huge and far beyond the abilities of the Libyan Red Crescent and even beyond the abilities of the government,” Tamar Ramadan, head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies delegation in Libya, said in a statement to the UN.

“That’s why the government in the east has issued an international appeal for support.”




12, 2023. Scientists say the storm is just the latest extreme weather event to carry some hallmarks of climate change. (AP Photo/Jamal Alkomaty)

Margaret Harris, spokesperson for the World Health Organization, said the flooding was of “epic” proportions.

“There’s not been a storm like this in the region in living memory, so it’s a great shock,” she said.

There is also concern for the hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees from more than 40 countries who use Libya as a jumping-off point to reach Europe and who have likely been caught up in the floods.




Rescue search through the rubble of an earthquake-damaged house in Imi N'Tala village near Amizmiz in Morocco on September 13, 2023. (AFP)

With global concern spreading about both disasters, several nations have offered aid and deployed rescue teams to Derna and isolated villages across Morocco to help survivors and retrieve the bodies of their loved ones from the rubble.

Offers of assistance came from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Tunisia and Turkiye. Saudi Arabia on Tuesday expressed solidarity with “Libya and its brotherly people, and the victims of the floods.”

King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman earlier ordered aid flights to Morocco, and the crown prince called King Mohammed VI to affirm the Kingdom’s solidarity with the Moroccan people.




Villagers and rescuers recite a prayer in front of the body of an earthquake in the village of Imi N'Tala near Amizmiz on September 13, 2023. AFP) 

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has declared a three-day mourning period and directed military personnel to provide humanitarian aid, including relief teams, rescue equipment and shelter camps for Libya and Morocco.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, president of the UAE, ordered the dispatch of urgent relief and search and rescue teams to Libya, deploying two aid planes carrying 150 tons of food, relief and medical supplies.

A Kuwaiti flight took off on Wednesday with 40 tons of supplies for Libya, while Jordan sent a military plane loaded with food parcels, tents, blankets and mattresses.




A woman reacts by the rubble of destroyed buildings in the aftermath of the deadly 6.8-magnitude September 8 earthquake in the village of Imi N'Tala near Amizmiz in central Morocco on September 10, 2023. (AFP)

None of this has detracted from the Moroccan earthquake response. Rescuers from Spain, the UK and Qatar are helping local search teams to find survivors.

Many villagers in Morocco have had no power or telephone network since the earthquake struck and have had to rescue loved ones and pull dead bodies from under their crushed homes without any assistance.

The UN estimated that more than 300,000 people had been affected, a third of them children, by the powerful seismic event that hit just after 11 p.m. when most families were asleep.

Moroccans have demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of adversity, but as rescue teams race against the clock to locate survivors, experts say restoring a sense of normality should be the priority.




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“While buildings and towns can be rebuilt through reconstruction efforts,” it is the “going back to normal for the survivors which is the biggest challenge,” Karim Wafa Al-Hussaini, a historian with roots in Morocco, told Arab News.

“Instilling a renewed sense of normal among the population will be definitely one of the biggest challenges throughout and after the reconstruction projects.”

The earthquake has underscored the fragility of buildings in Morocco’s rural areas, constructed using traditional Amazigh building techniques. Climate change has also left its mark, rendering the structures more susceptible to devastation.

Fatima Ahouli, director of operations with the Morocco-based Imal Initiative for Climate and Development, believes these latest incidents underscore the need for investment in infrastructure designed to cope with natural disasters and extreme weather events.

“This entails the construction of robust infrastructure, such as educational institutions and healthcare facilities, capable of enduring the rigors of severe weather events, all while fostering sustainable resource management practices,” she said.

Morocco’s King Mohammed has launched assessments to evaluate the structural damage and the feasibility of rebuilding the hardest-hit regions. Nevertheless, rescue operations have incurred criticism amid the rising death toll.

Meanwhile, in Marrakech, where state assistance for survivors has been most immediate, many modern buildings remained unscathed by the tremors. Several of the city’s famous historical sites, however, were not so fortunate.

“The earthquake’s fury primarily targeted ancient buildings, some dating back centuries, constructed using traditional clay methods once prevalent in Marrakech,” Yassine Soussi Temli, managing partner at the investment firm Maghreb Capital Advisers, told Arab News.

“The city’s distinctive architectural heritage has borne the brunt of the earthquake’s wrath.”


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Reports in the Moroccan media confirmed the collapse of sections of the Tinmel Mosque. Images circulating online depict crumbling walls, a partially fallen tower and sizable heaps of debris.

UNESCO has been apprised of the damage caused to the mosque, which had been nominated for inclusion on its prestigious list of World Heritage Sites, and is planning to send a team to assess its extent.

While some structures within Marrakech’s Old City, itself a UNESCO World Heritage Site, sustained significant damage, other revered sites escaped largely unscathed.




An earthquake survivor kneels to pray in front of a damaged house in the village of Ighermane near Adassil in central Morocco on September 13, 2023. (AFP)

Jemaa El-Fnaa Square, for example, a bustling tourist attraction teeming with vibrant markets, street vendors and gardens, appeared to have weathered the earthquake’s impact relatively unharmed.

The Kutubiyya Mosque, which stands over the square, also remained structurally sound, although there were reports of cracks in sections of the Old City’s iconic red earth walls.

The economic impact of the earthquake is multi-faceted. Although a major tourist destination, Marrakech is not the primary engine of Morocco’s economic growth. That role is reserved for the Rabat-Casablanca axis, the nation’s industrial powerhouse.

Furthermore, the burgeoning region of Tangier, with its thriving port, promises considerable economic potential.




People who were displaced by the earthquake carry humanitarian aid to their tents in the town of Imi N'tala, outside Marrakech, Morocco, on Sept. 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) 

The earthquake will inevitably have an impact on Marrakech’s economy but the government has insisted that the annual meetings of the World Bank Group and IMF will go ahead as planned from Oct. 9-15.

“Morocco’s economic performance, prior to the earthquake, had showcased resilience in the face of global challenges,” Temli said. “The nation had navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and managed inflationary pressures with commendable poise. Morocco had even emerged as a major recipient of foreign direct investment in North Africa.

“I am pretty sure that the government will put all the measures necessary to quickly rebuild the city of Marrakech so that it will continue to receive the millions of tourists it does every year.”

 


Japan is committed to supporting COP28, Kishida tells UAE Special Envoy

Japan is committed to supporting COP28, Kishida tells UAE Special Envoy
Updated 8 sec ago
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Japan is committed to supporting COP28, Kishida tells UAE Special Envoy

Japan is committed to supporting COP28, Kishida tells UAE Special Envoy

TOKYO: Sultan Al-Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Special Envoy of the United Arab Emirates to Japan, met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo on Monday and expressed his expectations for Japan’s contributions to the COP28 conference on the environment.

Al-Jaber is also the President-Designate of COP28, which will take place in the United Arab Emirates from November 30 to December 12.

The prime minister stated that Japan is fully committed to making efforts to contribute to the success of COP28. Both sides confirmed that they will work closely towards making COP28 a success, according to a statement by the foreign ministry.

Kishida expressed his appreciation for the UAE’s stable supply of crude oil to Japan and working with Japanese companies in the same field. He asked Al-Jaber for UAE’s help in stabilizing the crude oil market and increasing production.

Both sides exchanged views on cooperation between Japan and the UAE towards overall stabilization of the international oil market. They also discussed the “Japan-UAE Innovation Partnership” and the “Global Green Energy Hub” concept covered during Kishida’s July visit to the UAE.

Kishida welcomed the convening of the First Ministerial Level Meeting of the “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Initiative (CSPI)” held between Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Al-Jaber and stated that Japan attaches great importance to the strategic partnership with the UAE.

Kishida said he looks forward to further cooperation with the UAE in various fields, and Al-Jaber expressed his renewed hopes for strengthening bilateral relations with Japan.


One dead, four injured in incident at Iran’s Bandar Abbas refinery -state news

One dead, four injured in incident at Iran’s Bandar Abbas refinery -state news
Updated 25 September 2023
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One dead, four injured in incident at Iran’s Bandar Abbas refinery -state news

One dead, four injured in incident at Iran’s Bandar Abbas refinery -state news
  • The incident did not impact production at the refinery, which is one of Iran’s largest

DUBAI: One person has died and four others were injured in an incident at Iran’s southern refinery of Bandar Abbas last week, Iranian state media reported on Monday.
The Iranian Oil Ministry’s Shana news agency said the incident occurred late on Sept. 22 during emergency repairs, adding that five maintenance workers were hurt, with one worker since dying of their injuries.
“During the emergency repair operation in one of the process units of this refinery, five people were injured, and one of the injured died on Monday,” an official from Bandar Abbas refinery told state media.
The incident did not impact production at the refinery, which is one of Iran’s largest, Shana added.


Egypt to hold presidential election Dec 10-12

Egypt to hold presidential election Dec 10-12
Updated 25 September 2023
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Egypt to hold presidential election Dec 10-12

Egypt to hold presidential election Dec 10-12
  • President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi widely expected to win reelection

CAIRO: Egypt will hold a presidential vote on Dec 10-12, the elections authority said on Monday, with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi widely expected to win reelection despite an economic crisis including record inflation and chronic foreign currency shortages.
El-Sisi, 68, can stand for a third term due to constitutional amendments in 2019 that also extended the length of presidential terms to six years from four, opening the way for him to stay in office until at least 2030.
Election results are expected to be announced on Dec. 23 and, in the event of a run off round, final results should be announced on Jan. 16 at the latest, the election authority said.


Iraqi torture victims still waiting for US compensation, two decades after invasion

Iraqi torture victims still waiting for US compensation, two decades after invasion
Updated 25 September 2023
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Iraqi torture victims still waiting for US compensation, two decades after invasion

Iraqi torture victims still waiting for US compensation, two decades after invasion
  • No evidence found that the US government paid any compensation or other redress to victims of detainee abuse in Iraq, nor issued any individual apologies

LONDON: The US government has apparently failed to compensate Iraqis who were tortured or abused two decades after evidence surfaced that US forces mistreated inmates at prisons they ran in Iraq, Human Rights Watch said on Monday.

About 100,000 Iraqis were detained by the US and its coalition allies between 2003 and 2009 after the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.

HRW and other organzations documented torture and other abuse by US forces in Iraq. Survivors of abuse have given accounts of the treatment they suffered, but have received little recognition from the US government and no compensation.

“Twenty years on, Iraqis who were tortured by US personnel still have no clear path for filing a claim or receiving any kind of redress or recognition from the US government,” said the Washington director at HRW, Sarah Yager.

“US officials have indicated that they prefer to leave torture in the past, but the long-term effects of torture are still a daily reality for many Iraqis and their families,” Yager said. 

Between April and July 2023, HRW interviewed a former detainee at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison called Taleb Al-Majli and three anonymous people with knowledge of his detention, and condition after his release.

He claims to be one of the men in a photograph that was circulated widely showing a group of naked, hooded prisoners on top of one another in a human pyramid, while two US soldiers smiled behind them.

“Two American soldiers, one male and one female, ordered us to strip naked. They piled us prisoners on top of each other. I was one of them,” Al-Majli said.

Al-Majli said that US forces detained him while he was visiting relatives in Anbar province in 2003 during a round-up of old men and boys in the village he was staying in. 

After being held for a few days at Habbaniya military base and at an unknown location in Iraq, US forces moved Al-Majli to Abu Ghraib prison. 

“It was then the torture started. They took away our clothes. They mocked us constantly while we were blindfolded with hoods over our heads. We were completely powerless. I was tortured by police dogs, sound bombs, live fire and water hoses,” he said.

HRW said his story of detention at Abu Ghraib is credible and that Al-Majli presented corroborating evidence, including a prisoner identity card with his full name, inmate number and cell block, which he said US forces issued him at Abu Ghraib after taking his photo, iris scan and fingerprints. 

Al-Majli also showed the organization a letter he obtained in 2013 from the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights, a governmental body with the mandate to protect and promote human rights in Iraq, confirming his detention at Abu Ghraib prison, including his date of arrest, and listing the same inmate number as his prisoner identity card.

For two decades, he has sought compensation and an apology for the abuse he was subjected to. He sought help from the Iraqi Bar Association and the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights but they could not assist. He said that he did not know how to contact the US military and raise a claim.

HRW wrote to the US Department of Defense in June 2023 outlining Al-Majli’s case and requesting information on compensation for survivors of torture in Iraq. No response was received. 

“The US secretary of defense and attorney general should investigate allegations of torture and other abuse of people detained by the US abroad during counterinsurgency operations linked to its ‘Global War on Terrorism,’” Yager said. 

“US authorities should initiate appropriate prosecutions against anyone implicated, whatever their rank or position. The US should provide compensation, recognition and official apologies to survivors of abuse and their families,” she said.

The organization has found no evidence that the US government has paid any compensation or other redress to victims of detainee abuse in Iraq, nor has the US issued any individual apologies or made other amends.


Latest talks between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt over mega dam on the Nile end without breakthrough

Latest talks between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt over mega dam on the Nile end without breakthrough
Updated 25 September 2023
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Latest talks between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt over mega dam on the Nile end without breakthrough

Latest talks between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt over mega dam on the Nile end without breakthrough
  • Egypt’s water ministry blamed Ethiopia for the failure to make a breakthrough, alleging that Addis Ababa was “opposed to any compromise”
  • Talks resumed in August after a long hiatus, with Ethiopia and Egypt hoping to reach a deal by November

ADDIS ABABA: The latest talks over the mega dam that Ethiopia is building on the Nile River’s main tributary have broken up without an agreement.
The two-day talks between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt on the disputed Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam ended on Sunday night in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital.
Ethiopia’s chief negotiator, Seleshi Bekele, said the countries had “exchanged constructive ideas on various outstanding issues” and added that his country remains committed to continuing the negotiations.
Egypt’s water ministry blamed Ethiopia for the failure to make a breakthrough, alleging that Addis Ababa was “opposed to any compromise.” It expressed concern and said an agreement was needed to protect Egypt’s water security and national interests.
Talks have rumbled on for years over the controversial $4.6 billion project, whose construction started in 2011. It is expected to produce over 6,000 megawatts of electricity — double Ethiopia’s current output and enough to make it a net energy exporter.
Ethiopia sees the dam as essential to its development but downstream Egypt — the Arab world’s most populous country — fears it will restrict its share of the Nile water, critical for its huge population of 100 million people.
About 85 percent of the river’s flow originates from the Blue Nile in Ethiopia though Egypt has received the lion’s share of the Nile’s waters under decades-old agreements dating back to the British colonial era.
Sudan, also downstream from the Blue Nile where the dam is located, wants a deal to regulate the amount of water Ethiopia will release in the event of a major drought.
Talks resumed in August after a long hiatus, with Ethiopia and Egypt hoping to reach a deal by November. Earlier this month Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said the final phase in filling the dam’s reservoir had been completed.
Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said his country is already facing serious water scarcity issues and criticized Ethiopia for having embarked on the dam’s construction without consulting fellow Nile states.
Ethiopia’s Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen told the UN body on Saturday that the dam represented the “legitimate development aspirations of Ethiopians,” and asserted that it would help increase regional integration and prosperity.
On Monday, Ethiopia’s foreign ministry said Egyptian and Sudanese concerns were also “legitimate” but added that its rights need to be protected.