logo
Echoes of Ethiopian famine in Gaza crisis

Echoes of Ethiopian famine in Gaza crisis

The Guardian2 days ago
With reference to the ongoing starvation in Gaza and the Ethiopian famine of 1984, Gaby Hinsliff writes: 'Except this time it's no natural disaster' (There is a dangerous disconnect: on Gaza, politics no longer speaks for the people, 24 July). But the starvation of Tigrayans in northern Ethiopia in the 1980s was as man-made as that of Gaza.
The Ethiopian government of the time blocked food from reaching Tigray to starve it into submission. The earlier government of Emperor Haile Selassie did likewise, and also persuaded its ally, the British government, to bomb Tigray in 1943.
Today, the starvation, and the rape and killing of Tigrayans, continues as the Pretoria agreement, which was supposed to bring peace after the most recent war on Tigray, in which 600,000 Tigrayans perished (2020-22), has not been fully implemented.
Many Tigrayans are still unable to return to their ancestral homes in western Tigray as it is occupied by hostile forces from other Ethiopian regions and from neighbouring Eritrea. Across the world, starvation remains an effective tool of war.Gail WardenLondon
Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

France halts Gaza evacuations over antisemitism row involving Palestinian student
France halts Gaza evacuations over antisemitism row involving Palestinian student

The Independent

time11 minutes ago

  • The Independent

France halts Gaza evacuations over antisemitism row involving Palestinian student

France has suspended all evacuations from Gaza following an antisemitism controversy involving a Palestinian student recently admitted to the country. The move comes after it was revealed that Nour Atallah, a 25-year-old woman from Gaza, had posted antisemitic content on social media before being accepted into a prestigious French university. French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced the decision in Paris on Thursday. 'She must leave the country. She does not have a place in France,' Mr Barrot said in an interview with radio station France Info, without naming the student. He did not specify whether the student would be sent back to Gaza. He added that no new visas will be issued, and no new admissions from Gaza will take place until an investigation is conducted. The French and Israeli vetting of her before she arrived in France did not reveal the 'antisemitic and unacceptable' posts, Mr Barrot said. The temporary suspension will also see a review of all Gaza evacuees who have arrived in France so far. The scandal has triggered strong condemnation across France's political spectrum. Ms Atallah, who had been awarded a scholarship to study at Sciences Po Lille, faces expulsion from France after her university withdrew her accreditation. Her social media posts surfaced recently, containing antisemitic rhetoric and praise of Adolf Hitler. French authorities say a criminal investigation has been opened on the grounds of 'justifying terrorism and crimes against humanity'. French interior minister Bruno Retailleau wrote on X that he has requested legal action to be taken. ' Hamas propagandists have no place in our country,' he added. Since October, France has evacuated more than 500 people from Gaza, including children, journalists, and artists, as part of its ongoing humanitarian efforts. The incident has placed renewed scrutiny on the vetting procedures coordinated with Israeli authorities. A statement from Sciences Po Lille said the content of the student's post was 'in direct contradiction' with its values. '(Sciences Po Lille) fights against all forms of racism, antisemitism, and discrimination, as well as against any type of call to hatred, against any population whatsoever,' the university said on X on Wednesday. The French government has not said when evacuations might resume, promising a thorough review and strengthened protocols before any further admissions from Gaza will be considered.

3 people die in overnight Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia
3 people die in overnight Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia

The Independent

time41 minutes ago

  • The Independent

3 people die in overnight Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia

​​Ukrainian drone attacks overnight into Saturday killed three people, Russian officials said Saturday. Russia's Defense Ministry said air defenses intercepted or destroyed 112 drones across eight Russian regions and the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula. A drone attack on the Rostov region, on the border with Ukraine, killed one person, acting governor Yuri Slyusar said. Further from the front line, a woman was killed and two other people wounded in a drone strike on business premises in the Penza region, according to regional governor Oleg Melnichenko. In the Samara region, falling drone debris sparked a fire that killed an elderly resident, regional Gov. Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said. According to the Ukrainian air force, Russia launched 53 drones and decoys at Ukraine overnight into Saturday. It said that air defenses shot down or jammed 45 drones. Eleven people were wounded in an overnight drone strike on the Kharkiv region, Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said Saturday. The reciprocal drone strikes followed a day of mourning in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Friday, after a Russian drone and missile attack killed 31 people, including five children, and wounded over 150. The continued attacks come after U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a shorter deadline — Aug. 8 — for peace efforts to make progress. Trump said Thursday that special envoy Steve Witkoff is heading to Russia to push Moscow to agree to a ceasefire in its war with Ukraine and has threatened new economic sanctions if progress is not made. ___

'Drone followed Gaza colleague home and wiped out his family', says British doctor
'Drone followed Gaza colleague home and wiped out his family', says British doctor

Sky News

timean hour ago

  • Sky News

'Drone followed Gaza colleague home and wiped out his family', says British doctor

A British doctor who has just returned from Gaza says a drone followed her colleague home where it wiped out his family. Nada Al Hadithy also told Sky News presenter Matt Barbet. how one of her patients, a 21-year-old woman who was six months pregnant, lost her baby after she was "blown up in her tent". "Her husband was killed, she lost her eye, she had an open fracture, and both her legs were completely destroyed from the bomb blast," "This woman is completely emaciated, with no vitamins, no food. And one day her baby stopped moving." It comes after Donald Trump's Middle East envoy visited a food distribution site in Gaza. Steve Witkoff and the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, toured a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution site in the southern city of Rafah on Friday. The Israeli-backed American contractor's efforts to deliver food to the region have been mired in violence and controversy, with hundreds killed by Israeli fire while walking to such aid sites since May, according to eyewitnesses, health officials and the UN human rights office. Israel's military says it has only fired warning shots at people who approached its forces, while GHF said its armed contractors have only fired warning shots to prevent deadly crowding. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 2:47 Trump envoy Witkoff visits Gaza Ms Hadithy said the situation in Gaza is "absolutely desperate" and a school classroom's worth of children "are dying every single day". She said there was "a tangible difference in the amount of starvation and the emaciation of our patients" during the three weeks she was in Gaza, adding: "Even the severity of and relentlessness of the bombings was worse. "It was mass casualty after mass casualty, with people being blown up in their tents, which were meant to be in green zones. The situation was catastrophic." She said one colleague - who she described as "patient, joyful and hardworking" - was followed home one day by a quadcopter drone, according to eyewitness testimony from fellow medical workers. The drone "didn't kill him on the route where he was on his own, it waited until he was in his tent and greeted his three children and killed all of them", she added. During her time in Gaza, Ms Hadithy said she saw "emaciated children", adding: "So now you've got two million starving people in [an area] the same size as Exeter, which in our country and in our census in 2021 had 130,000 people in it. "That's two million people with no water, no sanitation, no food, no medical supplies." Ms Hadithy also said Gazan health workers themselves are starving. "Never before have I seen such dignified, committed people," she added. Read more: Sky News unveils pattern of deadly Israeli attacks on families Explainer: What does recognising a Palestinian state mean? In a post on X, Mr Witkoff said he had spent more than five hours inside Gaza to gain "a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza". He did not request any meetings with UN officials in Gaza during the visit, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 1:00 Aid dropped into Gaza The war began when Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in an attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 and abducted 251 others. Of those, they still hold around 50, with 20 believed to be alive, after most of the others were released in ceasefires or other deals. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, which does not differentiate between militants and civilians in its count. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has been approached for a comment.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store