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Man made famine - the world should be ashamed

(435 Posts)
Whitewavemark2 Fri 22-Aug-25 12:44:59

We sit by watching as children starve to death, their mothers’ cannot feed them and their fathers’ unable to provide them with food.

Every single calorie is controlled by one government.

Why are we allowing this situation to continue?

Wyllow3 Fri 22-Aug-25 18:51:20

David Lammy
[email protected]

Kemi Badenoch
[email protected]

James Cleverly
[email protected]

Sayeeda Warsi (conservative friends of Palestine)
[email protected]

David Beckham
[email protected]

Leah Williamson (Englands women footie captain)
[email protected]

Phil Rosenberg (UK Jewish Board of Deputies president)
email: [email protected].

Tilda Swinton
[email protected]

Many other prominent actors and actresses and comedians.

Your local MP

so many morel look them up, print here, write to them

Rosie51 Fri 22-Aug-25 19:01:46

Whitewavemark2

We sit by watching as children starve to death, their mothers’ cannot feed them and their fathers’ unable to provide them with food.

Every single calorie is controlled by one government.

Why are we allowing this situation to continue?

What do you suggest the world does? How does the outside world change this situation? I'm as appalled by this as the next person but don't see that loads of people expressing outrage on internet threads achieves anything. Do we want our government (or others) to send troops to Israel or Gaza? If not that way, then what do we do to stop it?

To Wyllow how do you think writing to the people you list will help? Does David Beckham have the ear of either Hamas or Netanyahu?

Dee1012 Fri 22-Aug-25 19:11:10

Anniebach

Quote Dee1012 Fri 22-Aug-25 15:37:53
The events of Oct' 07th were horrendous - there can be no disputing that.

However...if you treat people in the way Israel has since 1948 i.e massacres, expulsions - even using biological weapons how can anyone dispute that what is happening is ethnic cleansing / genocide.

I can't understand why the world is allowing this to happen...

Genocide since 1948 ?

Perhaps I worded it badly?

In my opinion, what can only be described as ethnic cleansing began in 48', it's now progressed to genocide.

Babs03 Fri 22-Aug-25 19:13:11

Thanks Wyllow3, have displayed the starvation poster when you last posted it on here. My grown family have done the same and passed on the link to their friends

Babs03 Fri 22-Aug-25 19:17:41

Have also signed petitions and written an email to my MP, who replied to say he had been inundated by similar emails and would raise the need for the government to take action when next in parliament.

foxie48 Fri 22-Aug-25 19:28:28

"In response to the report, UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said the famine was entirely preventable, saying food could not get through to the Palestinian territory "because of systematic obstruction by Israel".

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said: "Just when it seems there are no words left to describe the living hell in Gaza, a new one has been added: 'famine'."

He described it as "not a mystery," but rather "a man-made disaster, a moral indictment, and a failure of humanity itself".

Above taken from the BBC website, I listened to Tom Fletcher he sounded very distressed. Decent people, doing difficult jobs and I am much more inclined to believe them than those who speak on behalf of Netanyahu's government who say there is no famine in Gaza! I don't know how anyone can defend the actions of this Israeli Government, it is beyond my understanding. There is food waiting to feed starving people yet Netanyahu and his government is willing to let people starve and people with full bellies make excuses for them. It beggars belief!

REKA Fri 22-Aug-25 19:44:42

Is anybody aware of Jews being forcibly expelled from Arab countries post WWII?

Until the 1960s, approximately one million Jews lived in Iran and other Arab countries having arrived in the region more than 2,000 years before. Nowadays, it is estimated that only around 15,000 remain, as the majority of the Jewish population in Muslim lands were forced to flee their homes in the years following the establishment of the State of Israel. This mass expulsion and exodus is part of modern history, but inexplicably, it’s neither taught at schools nor remembered

History is ignored. So many slavishly believe everything that Hamas says. Nobody believes anything Israel says.

Have any of your read Hamas' charter?

Probably not

Babs03 Fri 22-Aug-25 19:47:15

I think those who defend the actions of the Israeli government have deeply entrenched prejudices that prevent them from seeing the suffering of a people they see as ‘less than’ themselves and of course Israelis.
Is ironically much the same as antisemitism.

foxie48 Fri 22-Aug-25 20:45:04

REKA I'm well aware of the situation faced by Jews in many Arab countries following the creation of Israel and the Nakba which led to thousands of Palestinians being forced out of their homeland. Both were wrong IMO but neither justifies the current treatment of Palestinians in Gaza, or the West Bank for that matter. The behaviour of Hamas doesn't justify the deliberate starving of Palestinians either. I have yet to see anyone on this thread support the actions of Hamas, I certainly don't, and I totally condemn the actions of the Netanyahu government which have gone far beyond legitimate self defence.

Eloethan Fri 22-Aug-25 21:07:02

I agree with Whitewave and I feel rather ashamed that I have done nothing practical to protest what is happening in Gaza. It is, as she says, absolutely shameful that the world is sitting by and watching a whole people being starved and terrorised.

The only thing I can think to do is to write to my local Labour MP and express my disgust at the lack of meaningful action from our government. Not just some military assistance, but all military assistance to Israel should, in my opinion, cease.

Oreo Fri 22-Aug-25 21:53:37

Babs03

I think those who defend the actions of the Israeli government have deeply entrenched prejudices that prevent them from seeing the suffering of a people they see as ‘less than’ themselves and of course Israelis.
Is ironically much the same as antisemitism.

And ironically those that don’t defend the actions of the Israeli government also have deeply entrenched prejudices!

Babs03 Fri 22-Aug-25 21:54:51

foxie48

REKA I'm well aware of the situation faced by Jews in many Arab countries following the creation of Israel and the Nakba which led to thousands of Palestinians being forced out of their homeland. Both were wrong IMO but neither justifies the current treatment of Palestinians in Gaza, or the West Bank for that matter. The behaviour of Hamas doesn't justify the deliberate starving of Palestinians either. I have yet to see anyone on this thread support the actions of Hamas, I certainly don't, and I totally condemn the actions of the Netanyahu government which have gone far beyond legitimate self defence.

Agree with this and will add that all the thousands of Palestinians who became refugees in neighbouring countries now have no right to return. Yet any Jewish person from around the world can go to Israel and be given citizenship.
Certainly Netanyahus attempt to ‘allow’ Palestinians to leave Gaza will result in ‘no right to return’ as well.

Anniebach Fri 22-Aug-25 22:01:38

Quote Oreo Fri 22-Aug-25 21:53:37
Babs03
I think those who defend the actions of the Israeli government have deeply entrenched prejudices that prevent them from seeing the suffering of a people they see as ‘less than’ themselves and of course Israelis.
Is ironically much the same as antisemitism.
And ironically those that don’t defend the actions of the Israeli government also have deeply entrenched prejudices!

Yes, I agree Oreo

Oreo Fri 22-Aug-25 22:01:55

What’s with all this silly being ashamed stuff?Nobody can do anything about conflicts in the Middle East.It’s like wanting to wear a hair shirt or whipping yourself when you haven’t done anything wrong.
Tbh the reason governments world wide are staying out of it is for sensible reasons, Islamic extremism is the scourge of modern times and it’s important that they are wiped out in Gaza.Governments know this.So there will be indignation expressed and so on, but that’s all.

Allira Fri 22-Aug-25 22:20:01

Aveline

But there is always a famine in Africa. My whole life I've been contributing to one or another appeal for children starving in Africa!! Why can't people live in peace? Why can't Israel see how their relentless bullying has led to this situation. I despair of people - well, men really. They seem compelled to fight.

Aveline, you've said what I want to say and more succinctly.

I mentioned this on another thread - I can remember my mother telling me to eat up my dinner all those years ago because children in India and Africa were starving, and giving me 2s to take to Sunday School for money for charities which were helping.
The famine in Ethiopia
Civil wars
Genocides.

It is depressing.

We cannot eliminate evil from the world, sadly.

Allira Fri 22-Aug-25 22:33:23

Wyllow3

David49

So we are ignoring Sudan which is currently the worst crisis.

Well that's our racism for you from all strata of UK society

The Sudan was part of the combined British and Egyptian Empires: people are black Africans, part of a continent carved up by European nations:

they were only after all (sarcasm button firmly on) "Natives"

we, the Great White Leaders Bringing Civilisation and Missionaries, did send some thoughtful and well intentioned people, but also sent our cast off aristocrats, our greedy business people, we brought them Aids, but the US have defunded initiatives to help:

we turned their communities and subsistence "grow your own food" into industrial agriculture for cheap food flown over polluting the atmosphere....

The education we offered was a white history and we cast them off in a hurry in just a few mostly post WW2 years, such a hurry ...

....that the vacuums left in power were often like in Zimbabwe and Sudan (not always, look at Botswana)

rapid and ill thought through attempts at establishing an imposed democracy failed and what followed was tyranny by fighting for a tyranny:

the right scweam and scweam at the very thought of any responsibility or reparations

And its easier to wring hands and say "how awful" and then cut aid budgets further

It's because they are black. We opened our hearts and front doors to Ukrainians - gosh they are white Europeans - when as you say yourself David....

no one mentions it.

There are a few erroneous statements in that post.

Wyllow3 Fri 22-Aug-25 23:49:02

Yes. It was from the heart and not every word checked.

Wyllow3 Sat 23-Aug-25 00:00:49

Yes, it's been pointed out on Aids already, I don't have a problem being corrected. Life is too short.

growstuff Sat 23-Aug-25 00:06:31

Oreo

What’s with all this silly being ashamed stuff?Nobody can do anything about conflicts in the Middle East.It’s like wanting to wear a hair shirt or whipping yourself when you haven’t done anything wrong.
Tbh the reason governments world wide are staying out of it is for sensible reasons, Islamic extremism is the scourge of modern times and it’s important that they are wiped out in Gaza.Governments know this.So there will be indignation expressed and so on, but that’s all.

Closer to home, extremism (not necessarily Islamic) is a threat. Most racist, anti-Islamic and antisemitic extremism is coming from white British-born groups.

Globally, Islamic extremist ideology stands no chance of being eradicated, but it will continue to be used as an excuse to kill innocent people.

Rosie51 Sat 23-Aug-25 00:14:14

Wyllow3

Yes, it's been pointed out on Aids already, I don't have a problem being corrected. Life is too short.

Yet you don't feel the need to come back and clarify you've posted inaccurately and apologise? It really does diminish confidence in your posts Wyllow. 'Posting from the heart' with inaccurate information does not excuse outright lies, intended or not. It really isn't any different to other (even right wing) biased posts 'from the heart'.

Wyllow3 Sat 23-Aug-25 00:39:16

Where's the "outright lies"?

As far as I can see, Aids are the it is the only totally incorrect statement, there may be disagreements as to my interpretation of history, but that is now a lie.

Btw, I do regret following the lead away as in "what about Sudan" - when we are discussing Gaza, however I do see a parallel in the occupation of Gaza and the West Bank by a colonising force.

Rosie51 Sat 23-Aug-25 00:54:16

Isn't the Aids issue a big enough incorrect, totally wrong LIE to make you think you ought to check before you post? Are you unaware that some people may not see the rather belated correction and truly believe your original post?
Saying that you post 'from the heart' sounds so sincere, but if that is misguided or inaccurate do you not appreciate the harm that can ensue? There's that saying that 'a lie is halfway around the world before the truth has its boots on', worth considering surely?

growstuff Sat 23-Aug-25 00:56:59

Which statements do you consider erroneous Allira?

There could even be some truth in the claim about Aids. Although it seems to be accepted that Aids originated in chimps and gorillas, there's also a credible theory that Aids was partially spread by unsterile needles from vaccinations (imposed by colonists).

The post is certainly emotional (nothing wrong with that) but I can't see any blatant inaccuracy.

I think there is a general feeling that Africa is a basket case and it's ignored. I think that Africa will eventually have its day (long after we're all dead).

growstuff Sat 23-Aug-25 00:57:58

Rosie51

Isn't the Aids issue a big enough incorrect, totally wrong LIE to make you think you ought to check before you post? Are you unaware that some people may not see the rather belated correction and truly believe your original post?
Saying that you post 'from the heart' sounds so sincere, but if that is misguided or inaccurate do you not appreciate the harm that can ensue? There's that saying that 'a lie is halfway around the world before the truth has its boots on', worth considering surely?

Rosie51 The Aids issue might not be as incorrect as you think.

Rosie51 Sat 23-Aug-25 01:10:15

growstuff

Which statements do you consider erroneous Allira?

There could even be some truth in the claim about Aids. Although it seems to be accepted that Aids originated in chimps and gorillas, there's also a credible theory that Aids was partially spread by unsterile needles from vaccinations (imposed by colonists).

The post is certainly emotional (nothing wrong with that) but I can't see any blatant inaccuracy.

I think there is a general feeling that Africa is a basket case and it's ignored. I think that Africa will eventually have its day (long after we're all dead).

Do you honestly believe that the Aids epidemic was caused by 'imposed vaccinations' by unsterile needles? That seems an awfully long reach to me, but I guess if you're that determined to believe every ill is caused by the awful West then it's pretty easy. When you have skin in the game then you have skin in the game.....I'm fervent about learning difficulties, ADHD, autism etc so I do get it.