German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Italian President Sergio Mattarella have called on rival Libyan factions to press ahead with a peace process in the wake of the flood disaster.
Libya had been in a state of civil war since the overthrow and death of long-time leader Muammar al-Gaddafi in 2011.
The west and east of the country had competing governments and the political chaos has been blamed for the flood devastation.
“We encourage all political actors to heed the Libyan people’s call for peace and stability based on a renewed sense of national unity and purpose,” the two presidents said in a joint statement on Thursday.
They added that the disaster should serve as a wake-up call.
Massive floods inundated the North African country a week and a half ago.
The most affected area in the port city of Derna in the east was declared uninhabitable.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 4,000 people have been identified as dead so far.
Rescue workers, however, feared that thousands more bodies lay under the rubble and the mud.
The global community had offered significant aid but Libya itself must come together to recover from the disaster, added the German and Italian presidents, who were meeting in Sicily.
“We welcome this international mobilisation, as well as the remarkable solidarity of the Libyan people at home.
“We also applaud the continued cooperation between all sides, groups and institutions, which makes no distinction between west, east and south,” they said.
