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UK charities have urged British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to put substance to his claim of combating world hunger by calling for a ceasefire and an end to the siege in Gaza.
The directors of twelve British charities, including Oxfam GB, War Child and Action on Hunger wrote to Mr Sunak in an open letter ahead of the Global Food Security Summit in London next week.
“More than two million people in Gaza are going hungry, including one million children. With barely a tenth of necessary food supplies able to enter since the conflict began, the UN is now warning of widespread hunger and even starvation,” the letter said.
The UK is co-hosting this year’s summit with the UAE and Somalia, which it hopes will mark a “reset moment” on the global food security crisis. Mr Sunak is expected to open the summit, where governments, international organisations, scientists, NGOs and the private sector will meet in London on 20 November.
The summit is also part of the UK’s efforts to support communities affected by Russia’s blockade and attacks on Ukrainian grain. At the G20 summit in September, Mr Sunak condemned the “terrible global consequences of Putin’s stranglehold over the most fundamental resources”.
But charity leaders fear the UK's stance will ring hollow as two million people under Israel’s siege in Gaza are running out of food, water, fuel and medical aid to sustain them. The UN's World Food Programme warned on Thursday that civilians in the Gaza Strip are facing starvation because food and water have become “practically non-existent”.
Mr Sunak has defended Israel’s war on Gaza but called for “humanitarian pauses” to allow aid to enter.
The humanitarian crisis had put the UK’s “reputation” on the line. “Civilians are suffering as a result, but so too is the UK’s reputation as custodian of UN Security Council Resolution 2417, which forbids the use of starvation as a weapon of war,” the letter said.
It added that a ceasefire agreed by Israel was necessary for supplies to enter Gaza. “The world has everything it needs to start saving lives in Gaza today, but unless Israel agrees to an immediate ceasefire and to allow food, fuel and other aid to enter, we will all be relegated to powerless bystanders, forced to watch from the sidelines as scores of civilians die from starvation at the hands of a UK ally.”
The letter urged Mr Sunak to condemn Israel’s siege. “We urge you to use your opening remarks on Monday to call for an immediate ceasefire, condemn Israel’s ongoing siege and insist that food, fuel, water and other aid vital for survival is allowed into Gaza with immediate effect,” the letter said.
The letter comes after British MPs voted against a motion for a ceasefire on Wednesday, causing rifts among the Labour party.
British MPs feared the UK had “lost sight of humanity” and “proportionality” in Gaza after hearing from aid agencies on Tuesday.
Melanie Ward, chief executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians, and a signatory to the letter, warned MPs of “massive outbreaks of infection and mass starvation”. Other witnesses at the hearing also feared the crisis in Gaza would have implications for the UK's condemnation of Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine.
The letter’s signatories were:
Jean-Michel Grand, executive director of Action Against Hunger UK
Chris Doyle, director of Council for Arab-British Understanding (Caabu)
Christine Allen, director of CAFOD
Patrick Watt, chief executive of Christian Aid
George Graham, Chief Executive of Humanity & Inclusion
Waseem Ahmad, chief executive of Islamic Relief
Tareq Shrourou, director of Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights
Melanie Ward, chief executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP)
Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah, chief executive of Oxfam GB
Rose Caldwell, chief executive of Plan International UK
Rob Williams, chief executive of War Child UK
Caroline Qutteneh, director of the Welfare Association
SPECS
Engine: 4-litre V8 twin-turbo
Power: 630hp
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: 8-speed Tiptronic automatic
Price: From Dh599,000
On sale: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Crawley Town 3 (Tsaroulla 50', Nadesan 53', Tunnicliffe 70')
Leeds United 0
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
The Case For Trump
By Victor Davis Hanson
HEADLINE HERE
- I would recommend writing out the text in the body
- And then copy into this box
- It can be as long as you link
- But I recommend you use the bullet point function (see red square)
- Or try to keep the word count down
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Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
Indoor Cricket World Cup Dubai 2017
Venue Insportz, Dubai; Admission Free
Day 1 fixtures (Saturday)
Men 1.45pm, Malaysia v Australia (Court 1); Singapore v India (Court 2); UAE v New Zealand (Court 3); South Africa v Sri Lanka (Court 4)
Women Noon, New Zealand v South Africa (Court 3); England v UAE (Court 4); 5.15pm, Australia v UAE (Court 3); England v New Zealand (Court 4)
Squads
Pakistan: Sarfaraz Ahmed (c), Babar Azam (vc), Abid Ali, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Hasnain, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Usman Shinwari, Wahab Riaz
Sri Lanka: Lahiru Thirimanne (c), Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Avishka Fernando, Oshada Fernando, Shehan Jayasuriya, Dasun Shanaka, Minod Bhanuka, Angelo Perera, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lakshan Sandakan, Nuwan Pradeep, Isuru Udana, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
The five pillars of Islam
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
If you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Chicago from Dh5,215 return including taxes.
The hotels
Recommended hotels include the Intercontinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, located in an iconic skyscraper complete with a 1929 Olympic-size swimming pool from US$299 (Dh1,100) per night including taxes, and the Omni Chicago Hotel, an excellent value downtown address with elegant art deco furnishings and an excellent in-house restaurant. Rooms from US$239 (Dh877) per night including taxes.
First Person
Richard Flanagan
Chatto & Windus
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
THE SPECS
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 275hp at 6,600rpm
Torque: 353Nm from 1,450-4,700rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Top speed: 250kph
Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: Dh146,999
