Libya accident kills four Greek rescue team members: ministry

Derna, Libya: Four members of a Greek rescue team sent to Libya after the devastating floods that hit Derna were killed in a road accident on Sunday, a Libyan minister said.

Othman Abdeljalil, health minister in the administration that runs the east of the country, told reporters they died while the team was en route from Benghazi to Derna, 300 kilometres (185 miles) to the east.

"The team was made up of 19 members. Four of them died and the other 15 were injured," Abdeljalil told a press conference in Derna.

"Eight are in a stable condition and the other seven are critical," he said.

The minister said the accident took place when their vehicle collided with a car carrying a Libyan family. Three people in the car died and two were seriously injured, he said.

In Athens, the Greek National Defence General Staff said in a statement that the rescue team's coach was in collision with a vehicle coming in the opposite direction.

The statement spoke only of "minor injuries" among the team members.

It said that according to Greek authorities in Libya, "the circumstances of the accident have yet to be clarified and the armed forces personnel have suffered minor injuries".

The Greek statement added: "An operation to collect the personnel in Benghazi and repatriate them was underway."