US cracks straight down on ‘warmongers’ who try to make food a weapon
13 March, 2021
The US has said that an incredible number of civilians face famine-like conditions in Yemen, Ethiopia and other war zones around the world and is pushing to use it against the “warmongers” who use hunger as a weapon.
Washington’s ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, urged the UN Security Council to be better at spotting famines before they happen and punishing military leaders who block foodstuff and other the help of reaching those in want.
In line with the UN, a lot more than 88 million persons suffered out of acute hunger by the end of 2020 due to conflict - a 20 per cent rise when compared to previous year.
And estimates suggest that number is certainly going up.
“We are looking for better, earlier, more steady reporting on these crises,” Ms Thomas-Greenfield explained on Thursday throughout a assembly of the Security Council, which the US holds the rotating presidency this month.
“We need to be sure the Secretary Basic [Antonio Guterres] gets the mandate and the various tools to bring these emerging conflicts and probable starvation in to the spotlight.”
Ms Thomas-Greenfield, a good veteran US diplomat who has witnessed famine and other crises during postings in Africa, said the UN’s top body must also “analyse and identify who's accountable for hunger” and do something against them.
“In the end, acute hunger is the callous weapon of warmongers,” she said.
“It is due to persons with names and faces, and the people who suffer at their hands deserve justice.”
The UN council met against a backdrop of worsening hunger crises across Africa’s Sahel, the Horn of Africa, South Sudan and Afghanistan. More than 30 million people globally are “one step apart” from famine, the UN says.
Conditions are worse even so in parts of Yemen, South Sudan and Burkina Faso, where famine or famine-like circumstances exist and a lot more than 150,000 people are at threat of starving to death, the environment body says.
It has all been compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic which has infected more than 118 million people, killed a lot more than 2.6 million others and caused widespread job losses and destroyed economies, Mr Guterres told the council.
“Ending hunger requires all of us to find political answers to conflict. I urge all says to create ending conflict, not simply mitigating its impact, a key foreign insurance plan priority,” said Mr Guterres.
“There is absolutely no place for famine and starvation in the 21st century.”
Source: www.thenationalnews.com