/ 9 November 2000

27 DIE OF THIRST IN SUDAN

TWENTY-seven young Sudanese died of thirst while travelling on a desert road from the northern Sudanese town of Dongola to the town of Kufra in Libya. The group lost their way and ran out of water, prompting the driver to set out on foot in search of water, but he was arrested upon entering Libyan territory. The arrested man, presumably a bus driver, did not tell the Libyan authorities that he had left passengers behind, dying of thirst. A survivor managed to reach Libya and broke the news of the death of his fellow passengers. – AFP