During armed conflicts, more civilians now perish from starvation than from the actual hostilities, the United Nations Security Council reported a year ago.

While starvation may be an unintended consequence of military activities, it also may be intentionally used by conflicting parties as a method of warfare. As 1998 Nobel-winning economist Amartya Sen stated, “There is no such thing as an apolitical food crisis.”

Yet the use of starvation in warfare has been prohibited under international law since the 19th-century Lieber Code. However, under certain circumstances, starvation has not always been illegal.

During World War II, in Germany’s 900-day siege of Leningrad, 1.1 million Russian civilians perished from starvation, yet a U.S. military court ruled this was not a criminal act. The 1949 Geneva Conventions specified, in fact, that starvation was “a weapon of war in principle.” Looking back, however, some 21st-century historians label the Leningrad siege as an act of genocide, with the goal to destroy the city and all its inhabitants.

More recently, the legality of starvation as a weapon of war has changed. The 1977 Geneva Convention, Additional Protocol I, states, “Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare is prohibited.” Additional Protocol II adds, “Starvation of civilians as a method of combat is prohibited.”

The 1998 Rome Statute, the legal foundation of the International Criminal Court, specifies that “intentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival, including willfully impeding relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions,” constitutes a war crime in international armed conflicts.

Starvation can occur through the destruction of food sources and sieges and blockades that prevent sufficient aid from entering a region. The inexorability of intentional starvation also leads some experts to classify it as torture.

In many situations today, the question arises of whether intentional starvation is used as a weapon of war. Ukraine, Gaza, and Ethiopia provide examples.

Ukraine

Human rights lawyers have accused Russia of intentionally starving the civilians of Mariupol as a method of warfare during its 85-day siege in 2022 (CNN, 6-13-2024).

Russian forces “systematically attacked objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population,” while cutting off evacuation routes and blocking aid delivery (Source: Starvation Mobile Justice Team of Global Rights Compliance).

Russia is accused of robbing Ukraine of grain and other commodities in occupied areas and of weaponizing food in the war. Agricultural fields have been devastated by bombs and landmines, and water and fuel have been cut off, making farming impossible. The UN World Food Program reports that 11 million people in Ukraine face hunger.

Gaza

Gaza is at high risk of famine and almost half a million people face starvation, warns IPC, the leading international authority on the severity of hunger crises.

After Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, Israeli officials began a siege of Gaza, restricting aid in an effort to limit Hamas.

In response to international pressure, Israeli officials increased the amount of aid that can enter. However, this has not had the hoped-for outcome; theft, looting, and diversion of lifesaving supplies have been widespread, and the likelihood of famine is increasing.

Ethiopia

From 2020-2022, Ethiopian government troops, aided by militias from Eritrea, perpetrated mass atrocities in the northern Tigray region to suppress a Tigrayan bid for regional autonomy. Up to 600,000 civilians perished in mass killings and intentional starvation (Council on Foreign Relations, 12-19-2023). The Ethiopian government is accused of blocking food aid and of looting aid that did get through. Millions of people remain in desperate need of adequate food and nutrition.

In mid-2021, the UN wanted to declare a famine in Tigray, but Ethiopia’s government blocked the move (The Guardian, 2-9-2024). Instead, the UN said at least 400,000 people were “living in famine-like” conditions. The U.S. put the figure as high as 900,000.

Legal action

Yet to date, no court has entered a conviction for an international crime explicitly based on famine. Although starvation has appeared in about 20 cases before international courts, it is usually included in other crimes or as a part of ill-treatment during detention. Proving “intent,” the defining element of starvation as a war crime, is difficult.

In March 2022, in the case Ukraine v. Russia at the UN International Court of Justice (ICJ), The Hague, Netherlands, the Court ordered Russia to immediately suspend its operations in Ukraine — which Russia has ignored.

In December 2023, South Africa filed a case at the ICJ accusing Israel of genocide. On January 26, the Court ordered Israel to prevent acts that could be considered genocidal and to enable humanitarian assistance to Gaza.

On May 20, 2024, Karim Khan of the UK, chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), announced that the ICC will seek arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh. Mr. Khan cited accusations against the Hamas leaders of murder, extermination, hostage-taking and acts of sexual violence as war crimes, and accusations for Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity including the starvation of civilians as a weapon of war (Reuters, May 21, 2024)

This court, also in The Hague, is an independent criminal tribunal run by 124 member states.

Legal Action Worldwide (LAW), representing Tigrayan victims of the Ethiopian conflict, filed a complaint in 2022 against Ethiopia before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The complaint alleges that Ethiopia is violating the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and calls for unfettered access to food and humanitarian aid to the region.

Unlike starvation and famine due to droughts and floods, these situations in Ukraine, Gaza, and Ethiopia illustrate the tragic consequences to civilians when food becomes a weapon of war.

Ellen J. Kennedy, Ph.D., is the executive director of World Without Genocide, which has special consultative status at the United Nations. World Without Genocide, based at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in St. Paul, will host a webinar about starvation as a war crime on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. via Zoom. Registration is required. The event is open to the public. $10 general public, $5 students and seniors, free to Mitchell Hamline students; clock hours for teachers, nurses, and social workers.

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There will be no Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlory or Xander Schauffele this week at TPC Twin Cities for the 3M Open. That’s become the expectation. Minnesota’s PGA Tour stop isn’t a “signature event” with an elevated purse and, essentially, a mandate from the tour for all of the top talents to show up and compete.

Instead, the 3M Open is the week after The Open and, this year, a week before the men’s Olympic competition in France. It’s unrealistic to expect the premier names of the PGA Tour to make a round trip across the pond to play this week in Blaine.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t intriguing players competing this week. Justin Rose and Billy Horschel will both tee it up after they tied for second behind Schauffele at The Open over the weekend. Sam Burns, Tony Finau and Keegan Bradley are all established, high-end players who are consistently in the mix for PGA Tour wins and are regularly in contention for spots on U.S. international teams.

And then there are the young guns — the names the casual golf observer may not yet recognize but likely soon will. Think about the inaugural 3M Open in 2019, when Collin Morikawa was in the final pairing on Sunday, falling by just one stroke to Matthew Wolff, and Viktor Hovland finished in a tie for 13th. Those two were well on their way to superstardom right out of college.

The same can potentially be true of a handful of young players descending upon the Twin Cities this week. Here’s a look at some of the young talents set to play in this week’s event.

AKSHAY BHATIA

Yes, Bhatia is a top-30 player in the world, currently ranked No. 28 in the Official World Golf Rankings. But that doesn’t mean he’s still not an ascending young star. At age 22, Bhatia is still younger than a couple of players to follow on this list. He’s simply been around the pro game longer after making the rare decision to forego collegiate competition — and, thus, amateur — five years ago when he was 17.

The rise to stardom wasn’t quick or linear from there, but he’s finally reached it. Bhatia has a pair of PGA Tour wins over the last 12-plus months, most recently winning the Texas Open in April. He has top-five finishes in two of his last three starts.

He doesn’t yet have the major championship performance to elevate his name to household status, but that only feels like a matter of time.

LUKE CLANTON

Clanton currently is the No. 2 amateur player in the world at the age of 20. He just wrapped up his sophomore season at Florida State and has no intentions of turning pro anytime soon, even as he lights up the top professional golf tour.

Clanton has played in four PGA Tour events this year, including the U.S. Open, and made the cut each time. Two of those finishes were top 10s, a tie for 10th at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Michigan and a tie for second at the John Deere Classic just three weeks ago in Illinois.

Of his 16 rounds of pro golf this summer, he has carded 11 rounds in the 60s.

Clanton intends to return to Florida State for his junior year in pursuit of an NCAA team title, but he’s already showing that he’s more than capable of contending with the world’s best on the biggest stages in the here and now.

NICK DUNLAP

Like Clanton, Nick Dunlap was supposed to have a spring sophomore season — at the University of Alabama. That never came to fruition, due to Dunlap’s stunning success.

Playing as an amateur, Dunlap won the PGA Tour’s American Express Championship in January, earning him a full two-year PGA Tour exemption should he decide to turn pro. He couldn’t pass up the opportunity. Suddenly, the 20-year-old’s life had changed.

The 2023 U.S. Amateur champion went from living in Tuscaloosa to traveling the nation to play one event after another. The new, isolating, self-reliant world of pro golf required a brief adjustment period for Dunlap, but he has more than found his footing.

Dunlap finished in a tie for 12th at The Memorial in early June, logged a top-10 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic earlier this month, and just won the Barracuda Championship over the weekend to become the first player to win an event on the PGA Tour as an amateur and as a professional within the same season.

He is now the 41st-ranked player in the world and still cannot legally consume alcohol.

NEAL SHIPLEY

The runnerup to Dunlap at the 2023 U.S. Amateur was perhaps the most notable amateur player in the world this year after achieving a rare major championship feat. Shipley was the low am at both The Masters and the U.S. Open, a feat most recently achieved by Viktor Hovland, Matt Kuchar and Phil Mickelson.

The 23-year-old turned pro after the U.S. Open and already has logged a pair of top 20s in four starts as a professional — a tie for 20th in the Rocket Mortgage Classic and a tie for fifth at the ISCO Championship just two weeks ago.

MICHAEL THORBJORNSEN

Competing an amateur two summers ago, Michael Thorbjornsen broke onto the scene with a fourth-place finish at the Travelers Championship on the PGA Tour.

Now 22 years of age, Thorbjornsen turned pro this summer after he earned full membership onto the PGA Tour for the remainder of this season and all of 2025 by finishing at the top of PGA Tour University rankings through the conclusion of his college career at Stanford. He already has made one significant splash, finishing in a tie for second at the John Deere Classic earlier this month.

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Can’t resist that jar of artisan chili crisp? Willing to fork over 10 bucks for a bottle of water “restructured” with quartz crystals? Maybe you’re determined to go plant-based or want to buy food with a mission. Either way, you’re in good company.

Specialty foods — a category comprised of unique or artisan foods and beverages made with high-quality ingredients from suppliers across the globe — have never been more appealing to American consumers.

According to the Specialty Food Association, which held its Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City during the last week of June, U.S. specialty food sales across retail, food service and e-commerce reached a whopping $206.8 billion in 2023. That’s up more than 6% from around $195 billion in 2022.

As evidenced by the many products on display at the show, we’re hungrier than ever, not just for innovative flavors that excite the palate — sometimes in unexpected ways (i.e. aperitifs infused with mushroom or coffee powered with protein) — but also for foods and beverages that are healthy, kind to the earth and sustainably produced.

More than 2,000 specialty food producers from 60-plus countries trotted out new and not-so-new products at the sprawling show, which took up both levels of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. After 40,000-plus steps up and down its aisles over nearly three days, during which I sampled half my body weight in imported Italian cheeses and freshly sliced prosciutto, here are some initial observations:

—Plant-based proteins and organic and gluten-free foods and snacks continue to grow in popularity. Products include everything from cauliflower chips to chef-crafted packaged vegan soups to savory vegan protein bars and sticks, plant-based cheese slices, oat-based granola butter and Lentiful’s high-protein, high-fiber “Instant Lentils.” (Just add water, stir and microwave.) Non-GMO is another buzz word.

Protein-infused products were among the trends at the 2024 Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

—Prebiotic and probiotic sodas and drinks that are focused on supporting gut health are also on the rise. Examples include ReCoup’s gut healthy rehydration sparkling beverages and Reset Kombucha’s powdered beverage mixes. Protein-enhanced foods also dominated. Projos’ Instant Power Coffee (organic, of course) comes stacked with 12 grams of complete protein alongside 175 mg of caffeine and is infused with collagen, which may help reduce joint inflammation and prevent aches and pains. Wilde Chicken & Waffles protein chips are made with chicken breast, egg whites and bone broth.

—Americans still love to spice things up; hot sauces, hot honey and chili-based condiments are still on the upswing. Multicultural sauces that bring a piece of global culinary heritage to the table seem especially hot. Two outstanding examples include Chingonas’ oil-based Salsa Macha from Mexico and Djablo Filipino Hot Sauce, the first U.S.-produced, family-owned, small-batch Filipino hot sauce in this country.

—Dry January isn’t a one-off. Non-alcoholic cocktails continue to trend and unique and exotic beverages such as bubble tea and boba — Asian tea drinks served with tapioca pearls — are growing in popularity. At the show, they were offered both in cans and in “instant” tea kits.

—Sustainability continues to be a factor for many consumers, both in packaging and in portioning to prevent food waste.

—Nostalgia rules. Consumers want products that come from a place they know, with personal backstories — say, a salsa or dumplings with roots in a family recipe or a sauce from a famous restaurant.

12 tastes to try

It was impossible for a reporter to see and taste everything at the 68th show, but here are the ones that caught my eye and/or dazzled my taste buds:

Flour & Olive Cake Mixes: Former attorney Estelle Sohne created her line of premium cake mixes with extra-virgin olive oil to celebrate cultural diversity. OIive oil, she notes, is a symbol of peace and sustainability. “I wanted to bring people together with cake as a vehicle for collaboration through recipes that celebrate cultural diversity and global connection.”

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To that end, an interactive of more than 70 international recipes on the company website allows bakers to use the four mixes with other ingredients to create cakes from around the world, with a personalized, downloadable label. “My mission is to put us all on the same table,” she says, “with our differences and similarities.” The chocolate cake was especially delicious.

VICUS water: Did you know that modern methods for making water safe to drink breaks apart the natural arrangement of water molecules? Me neither. This product “restructures” natural mineral water from Canada to its original state using quartz crystals. The end result is water that supposedly tastes smoother and silkier — and costs $9 for a 750 ml bottle.

Aaji’s Lonsa: Salsa isn’t the only thing worth dipping. Each 8-ounce container of this small-batch, spicy-sweet-tart condiment made in Philadelphia contains 1 pound of fresh tomatoes cooked down with a distinct blend of coastal Indian spices. The recipes are based on co-founder Rajus Korde’s grandmother’s tomato lonsa recipe. (“Aaji” means “grandmother” in Marathi.) They can be spread on sandwiches, spooned on toast or add a wonderful umami flavor to eggs. They’re incredibly craving-inducing.

CauliPuffs: Just as with Lay’s potato chips, there’s no way you can eat just one of these gluten-free, GMO-free puffed snacks made from corn, rice and cauliflower. The fact they’re baked in the healthy fat of avocado oil means you’ll you feel less guilty when you polish off a bag on the couch.

Tamarind Heads Masala BBQ Sauce: This next-generation sauce was named the best barbecue sauce at the 2024 show for a reason — it’s pretty incredible. Created to celebrate the culinary versatility of tamarind, a pod-like legume that’s both sweet and tangy, it’s a refreshing take on the ubiquitous summer condiment that offers a hint of smokiness, a touch of sweetness and a punch of heat.

Ceybon Chill AF, an alcohol-free aperitif infused with mushroom, can be enjoyed neat, over ice or as a mixer. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

Ceybon Chill AF: This alcohol-free, mushroom-infused aperitif is meant to promote calmness and relaxation. It’s crisp and spicy and definitely interesting — think a fizzy “gin and tonic” that’s good for you. A bottle costs $40, but it’s multifunctional: You can drink it straight up, over ice, or use it as a mixer.

MMMJerky: Most beef jerky varieties are chewy. This teriyaki-flavored beef snack crafted with USDA prime-grade brisket boasts the unique crunchy texture of a potato chip. One bite, and you’ll be hooked. The crispy, savory fat of the beef dissolves on your tongue when you bite into it, making you instantly want more.

Oishii Omakase Stawberries: It’s hard to believe these delicate, super-sweet berries — which hail from the foothills of the Japanese Alps — are vertically farmed in New Jersey. At about $2 a piece, they’re definitely a splurge, more suited to topping a fancy dessert than a bowl of Cheerios. But the berry’s incredible aroma, sweet taste and creamy texture make it worth it.

Genio Della Pizza: It’s pretty tough to find a frozen pizza that doesn’t taste like cheese-and-sauce-topped cardboard. These Neapolitan pies, which are hand-stretched and baked in a wood-fired oven in Italy, are the exception. The slow-rise dough is soft in the center and pillowy on the edges, and the Italian tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella are top-notch and full of flavor. They will definitely change your thoughts on frozen pizza.

Sunday Night’s Vegan Chocolate Sauce is the ultimate plant-based indulgence. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

Sunday Night Vegan Chocolate Sauce: Want to give in to hankering for chocolate with zero guilt? This silky, small-batch vegan chocolate sauce bills itself as “the ultimate, plant-based indulgence.” Crafted with Callebaut unsweetened chocolate and cocoa, coconut oil and cream and vegan-certified cane sugar, the boast is warranted. It tastes like something my mother made during the holidays to drizzle on ice cream. No wonder it walked away with an SFA award for best dessert topping.

Natural Blonde Bloody Mary Mix: The label hints at the bright ingredient that makes this Bloody Mary mix such a winner. Born in South Carolina’s Lowcountry, it’s made from fresh, sun-ripened golden tomatoes, which are milder and lower in acidity than red tomatoes. The mix also doesn’t include any paste or artificial ingredients and is low in sodium. It comes in golden and spicy flavors.

Good Hair Day Pasta: You can’t help but be charmed by this line of pasta’s clever packaging, which uses the strands and shapes of pasta to create various hairstyles (and has won numerous international awards for design). It’s on the pricey side — most boxes start at around $13 — but all varieties are handmade in the Umbria region of Italy according to the traditional “al bronzo” process.

©2024 PG Publishing Co. Visit at post-gazette.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

There’s a Minnesota native in the Baseball Hall of Fame who was known for his clutch pitching in the World Series — the pitcher who couldn’t be dragged from the mound even when the biggest games stretched past the ninth inning.

And that’s not even counting Jack Morris.

You’ve probably read a few times this week that Joe Mauer is the fourth St. Paul native to be inducted into the Hall, along with Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor and Jack Morris. It’s an incredible claim for the city — especially when considering the entire state has produced only one other hall of famer born here.

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On Monday morning, after the streets of Cooperstown were open again and most of the crowds had left, still basking in the memories of Mauer, Beltre, Leyland and Helton, I went back to the Hall to find that fifth Minnesotan native’s plaque and found him right there between Dizzy Dean and Paul “Big Poison” Waner.

Charles Albert Bender.

And right under that, the nickname that (almost) everyone in baseball called him, the nickname he disdained.

“Chief.”

Charles Bender was born in Crow Wing County in 1884, exact day and location unknown, and grew up on the White Earth Reservation in northern Minnesota. His mother was Ojibwe and his father German. His family was large and poor, and young Charles probably didn’t play baseball until after he’d been sent to the Carlisle boarding school in Pennsylvania, a place designed to “assimilate” Native American children into the dominant white culture. Bender later said, though, that he had unknowingly begun his training as a pitcher by throwing rocks at gophers on the reservation.

After being sent east, Bender rarely returned to Minnesota throughout the rest of his life, but he put together one of the more unlikely Hall of Fame careers in baseball history.

At Carlisle, he became a pitcher under the coaching of Pop Warner. He joined Connie Mack’s Philadelphia Athletics in 1903 and defeated Cy Young in his first game, and was a rising star by 1905. That’s when he began a remarkable run as a big-game pitcher. In the 1905 World Series, he pitched a shutout in Game 2 to beat future hall of famer Joe McGinnity, and he pitched another complete game in Game 6, though he and the A’s lost to one of the greatest ever, Christy Mathewson, who threw three shutouts in three starts for the New York Giants.

Bender had established himself as Mack’s go-to pitcher for big games, in an era when Mack had hall of famers such as Rube Waddell and the great “Gettysburg Eddie” Plank on his rosters.

Philadelphia Athletics pitcher Charles Bender is seen in this 1909 photo. He won six World Series games and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953. (Associated Press)

When Philadelphia next reached the World Series in 1910, Bender was Mack’s choice to start Game 1 over 31-game-winner Jack Coombs. Bender rewarded him with a complete-game victory. He lost Game 4 in a duel with “Three-Finger” Brown of the Cubs, but again Bender threw a complete game – all 10 innings. The Athletics won the series the next day.

Bender was again Mack’s choice over Plank for Game 1 of the 1911 Series, a rematch against Mathewson and the Giants. Mathewson prevailed again, 2-1, though Bender went the distance, of course. He finally beat Mathewson in Game 4 with a 2-run complete game. Then Bender returned to the mound two days later to throw another 4-hit complete game to clinch the championship.

Bender again started Game 1 of the 1913 World Series and also Game 4, winning both and going the distance each time (also pitching for the A’s in that series was Brainerd native Bullet Joe Bush).

It wasn’t until 1914 that Bender faltered, losing Game 1 and failing to finish a World Series start for the first time, and the Giants lost the series in an upset. Mack let him go after that, as he sold off and dismantled the Philadelphia dynasty that was about to become a lot more expensive.

Bender succeeded on the mound largely through his command of the strike zone, his large and varied repertoire of pitches, and his ability to read and exploit batters’ weaknesses. His knowledge of the game and attention to detail put him in demand as a major-league pitching coach in the second half of his life — especially his ability to pick up small “tells” that gave away opponents’ intentions.

Bender also might have invented the slider — though it was often called a “nickel curve” in his day.

Bender bounced around the league a bit after Mack let him go, though his glory years in big-league baseball were over. He kept pitching for years with minor league and semipro teams, and was in demand as a coach in the major leagues as the decades went on. He was also at the wheel when his car struck a man crossing a Philadelphia street, killing him, but after a controversy over whether Bender left the scene or had been sent away by a police officer, charges were dropped against him.

In an era of fiery, hard-fighting and foul-talking ballplayers, Bender was known for his cool and unflappable demeanor, especially under pressure, a trait he might have honed originally to deal with the abuse he encountered as an Ojibwe man competing in the “white” big leagues.

Tom Swift, a writer in Northfield, Minn., wrote a 2008 biography of Bender, “Chief Bender’s Burden,” that goes into wincing detail about the racism and prejudice Bender faced as an Ojibwe man. Though he was allowed to play in the “white” major leagues at a time Black ballplayers couldn’t, he still faced all the predictable taunts, slurs and slights from fans and opponents.

It’s all painful and infuriating to read, of course — but a strange thing happens as the book goes on. The prejudice doesn’t disappear, but as Bender goes through his life in the overwhelmingly white world of professional baseball at the time, he just keeps quietly winning over people, turning people who at first see him at best as some sort of mascot into lifelong friends. The quotes of esteem and respect from teammates and opponents pour out as the years go on.

Bender lived long enough to know that he had been inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1953, though he died before the ceremony and didn’t have to wince at seeing “Chief” on that plaque.

In the biography, Swift points out that just about every one of the few Native American players in the big leagues in this era was saddled with the “Chief” nickname. Bender was no different — though he spoke out against the moniker: “I do not want my name to be presented to the public as an Indian, but as a pitcher.”

But he eventually, grudgingly, surrendered to it, allowing it even on his gravestone. And it’s there on his Hall of Fame plaque.

Pitcher Charles Bender’s plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame, photographed on July 22, 2024. (Mike Decaire / Pioneer Press)

There was at least one baseball person who didn’t use the nickname, at least not around Bender. His longtime manager and friend Connie Mack called him “Albert,” his middle name and the last name Bender was playing under to preserve his amateur status at the time Mack acquired his contract.

Mack also said something else:

“If everything depended on one game,” Mack said, “I just used Albert.”

“From St. Paul to the Hall”: the Pioneer Press chronicled the careers of Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor, Jack Morris and Joe Mauer, and we’ve compiled the best of our coverage into a new hardcover book that celebrates the legendary baseball legacy of Minnesota’s capital city. Order your copy of “From St. Paul to the Hall.”

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