Bangladesh’s humanitarian aid arrives in cyclone-hit Libya

Bangladesh government’s humanitarian assistance in the wake of Cyclone Daniel and catastrophic flooding in Libya was handed over to the representatives of the Libyan government.

Bangladesh Ambassador to Libya Major General Hasnat handed over this assistance to Issa Al Falla, a member of the board of the Humanitarian Relief Agency in Libya on Friday afternoon, a press release said here on Saturday.

Earlier, a C-130J aircraft of Bangladesh Air Force carrying the humanitarian assistance for the disaster-affected people of Libya arrived in Benghazi on Friday around 3:30pm Bangladesh standard time.

As per the directives of the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the foreign ministry coordinated with the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief and the Armed Forces Division to send the humanitarian assistance.

Abdel-Moneim al-Ghaithi, mayor of Derna, on Friday feared that the death toll may climb to 20,000 as search efforts continue following a massive flood fed by the breaching of two dams in heavy rains in Libyan.

Libya's UN ambassador has put the figure at 6,000, the Red Crescent organisation estimates 11,000, and the mayor of Derna says it could be up to 20,000 as of Friday, reports BBC on Friday.