Libya floods sweep away migrants, and their hopes


Syrian Osama Kanaan, who lost his nephew Ammar Kanaan when the deadly storm hit Derna, gestures during an interview with Reuters in Benghazi, Libya September 20, 2023. REUTERS/Abdel Hadi Ramahi

DERNA/BENGHAZI (Reuters) - The small first-floor apartment in Derna became home away from home to Syrian migrant Ammar Kanaan, after the risk of drowning kept him from attempting the dangerous Mediterranean crossing to Europe that has cost the lives of so many.

After fleeing Syria two years ago to avoid military service, Kanaan had found a steady job in a pastry shop in the Libyan city and lived with two Sudanese roommates a few metres away from Derna's riverbed.

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