The storm particularly affected Derna, where two dams collapsed, causing water to flood most of the city. Entire neighbourhoods disappeared.

The tumultuous Storm Daniel affected thousands of people in Libya when it hit land on Sunday and caused devastating flooding. According to both the internationally unrecognised government in the east of the country and the government in Tripoli, in the coastal city of Derna alone, the number of dead exceeds 11,000, and many thousands are still missing.

We must not forget that this is also the #1 spot from where the majority of people from Africa, and also the Middle East, board boats to cross the Mediterranean Sea – destination Italy or Greece, and from there to their final destination, the United Kingdom.

Make no mistake, we will never ever know the exact number of dead and missing people. The general fear is that more than 20,000, if not double this number, have died which could have been avoided if the governments in Libya had acted in time (since the US and UK eliminated Gaddafi, Libya has two governments, both ruling).

In addition to Derna, other cities in eastern and north-eastern Libya, including Benghazi, are also affected. Local authorities have closed schools and shops and imposed curfews; four oil ports have been shut down across the country.

Flooding also affected Misrata in the west, more than 200km east of the capital Tripoli, where an internationally renowned government led by Abdul Hamid Dbeiba is based. Both governments declared three days of national mourning after the storm.

Both "governments" also issued an international appeal for assistance in the east of the country. The UN Humanitarian Aid Coordinator for Libya, Georgette Gagnon, called on the international community to rapidly assist the country, which was affected by civil war between 2014 and 2020.

The EU, especially Italy and Turkey, have announced their assistance.

Before Libya, storm Daniel had hit Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria last week, where it claimed close to 100 lives.

Make no mistake, the reason we have two governments in Libya is because the US and the UK eliminated Gadhafi – with no evidence that Gadhafi was a threat for the US or the UK. On the contrary, it was other way around. The US "washed their hands” of Libya because  they were and are not affected by immigration from Africa and the Middle East, while Europe is. Under Gadhafi’s leadership, there were just minor crossing over the Mediterranean Sea (as per the Gadhafi – Berlusconi Agreement).

I spent quite some time in Libya on "security" issues. I realised there and then the removal of Gadhafi would destabilise the whole area. But as usual the US and the UK are always getting into conflicts across the world, internationally promoting their adage “they are the guilty party and we have to restore the peace now".

Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been affected, and our heartfelt thanks to all those helping with the relief effort.