New York, June 12, 2024 – As leaders of the world’s seven advanced democracies prepared to hold their annual summit in Italy, the UN said the group has a particular responsibility and it can and must wield its power to end famine threatening millions of people from Gaza to Sudan and Myanmar.
The G7 countries are the US, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and the UK. They will be joined by leaders of the European Councils and European Commission, the World Bank and IMF, the UN secretary-General, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and leaders of some invited countries at the summit starting on June 13 at Puglia, Italy, which is this year the leader of the group.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the G7 has a prominent position in the global economy and institutions, which gives them a “unique responsibility and opportunity to push for change” and they have a “critical role to play in peace.”
“Peace in the Middle East – and I welcome President Biden’s recent peace initiative and urge all parties to seize the opportunity for a ceasefire and release of the hostages, and prepare the ground for a two-state solution,” Guterres said. “We must also keep working for peace in Ukraine – a just peace, based on the United Nations Charter and international law. Around the world, we must never let up in pursuit of solutions that affirm – and do not undermine – international law, including international humanitarian law.”
Martin Griffiths, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator said the powerful G7 meets at a time major conflicts in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine and Gaza are raging out of control and pushing millions of people to the “brink of starvation.”
“Only technicalities prevent famines from being declared, as people are already dying of hunger,” Griffiths said. “Famine in the 21st century is a preventable scourge. G7 leaders can and must wield their influence to help stop it. Waiting for an official declaration of famine before acting would be a death sentence for hundreds of thousands of people and a moral outrage.”
He said conflict fuels hunger and in Gaza, over one million or half of the population, are expected to face death and starvation by the middle of July. In Sudan, at least 5 million people are also teetering on the brink of starvation. Communities in more than 40 hunger hotspots are at high risk of slipping into famine in the coming month, including in war-torn parts of Aj Jazirah, Darfur, Khartoum and Kordofan.
“In both Gaza and Sudan, intense fighting, unacceptable restrictions and meagre funding are preventing aid workers from delivering food, water, seeds, health care and other lifesaving assistance at anywhere near the scale necessary to prevent mass starvation. This must change – we cannot afford to lose even a minute,” he said.
Griffiths said the G7 must immediately bring their substantial political leverage and financial resources to bear so that aid organizations can reach all people in need.
We must move large amounts of humanitarian assistance across borders and battle lines today – and mobilize considerable funding to keep the response going tomorrow.
But more than anything, the world must stop feeding the war machines that are starving the civilians of Gaza and Sudan.
“It is time instead to prioritize the diplomacy that will give people back their futures – and tomorrow, the G7 is at the helm,” he said.
UN adopts resolution calling for immediate ceasefire in Gaza – After several attempts to push through a resolution to end the Gaza war, the divided UN Security Council finally adopted on June 10 a US-sponsored resolution that calls for an “immediate, full and complete ceasefire.” The vote was 14-0 with Russia abstaining while the four other permanent council – US, China United Kingdom and France, voted in favor. Terms to implement the resolution remain to be negotiated between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in order to end the eight-month war that exploded on October 7 last year.
US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who introduced the draft text to the council’s 15 countries said the resolution will work in three phases to ensure a lasting and comprehensive end to the war.
—Phase one includes an “immediate, full, and complete ceasefire with the release of hostages including women, the elderly and the wounded, the return of the remains of some hostages who have been killed, and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners”. It calls for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from “populated areas” of Gaza, the return of Palestinians to their homes and places throughout the enclave, including in the north, as well as the safe and effective distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale.
—Phase two would see a permanent end to hostilities “in exchange for the release of all other hostages still in Gaza, and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza”.
—Phase three, “a major multi-year reconstruction plan for Gaza” would begin and the remains of any deceased hostages still in the Strip would be returned to Israel. (By J. Tuyet Nguyen)
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