Mogadishu
\nThe United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran is putting millions of people at risk of hunger.
\nIn an analysis published on Friday, the WFP said the continuation of the conflict\u2019s effect on oil prices has \u201cprofound implications\u201d for global food security.
\nThe agency asserted that estimations made in March, warning that 45 million people would fall into acute food shortages if oil prices remained at $100 a barrel by the end of June, were beginning to materialise.
\n\u201cWhile globally food prices \u2013 as measured by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Price index \u2013 only have seen a slight increase so far, substantial food price rises are already being felt in fragile countries,\u201d the WFP found.
\n\u201cThe findings indicate that the crisis is generating significant spillovers, particularly through fuel, food price and income shocks and trade disruptions.
\nAs these factors interact with preexisting vulnerabilities they quickly translate into visible impacts on food security and livelihoods,\u201d it added.
\nThe Iran war, which broke out on February 28, has rattled oil markets as the continued near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz has stopped oil tankers from completing their journeys.
\nAmid ongoing indirect negotiations between the US and Iran, securing an end to the conflict has stalled with no clear end in sight.
\nHouseholds in Afghanistan, Somalia and Sri Lanka are among the most seriously affected and face mounting pressure due to higher fuel costs, food price spikes, income losses and disrupted trade, the report found.
\nIn Somalia, 6.5 million people \u2013 roughly a third of the population \u2013 are expected to face severe hunger in 2026. Afghanistan could see 17.4 million people affected, the WFP said.
\nAn additional 2.5 million people in Somalia and a similar number in Afghanistan could be unable to afford a basic food basket.
\nIn 2026 in Somalia, the WFP projects that the ongoing conflict will leave \u201calmost 60 percent of all households unable to afford to purchase essential needs, compared to 47 percent in 2025\u201d.
\nIn Afghanistan, \u201cup to 2.3 million\u201d people could become food insecure, adding to the 13.8 million people who were food insecure before the war, the report reads.
\nBoth countries are reliant on imported energy and food.
\nMeanwhile, in Sri Lanka, projections found that up to 1.3 million people could be at risk of being unable to meet their basic food needs.
\nThe analysis added that the global humanitarian system was also facing a \u201cdouble squeeze\u201d amid rising delivery costs, leading to coverage gaps, and estimated that the WFP will serve 1.5 million fewer people than originally planned for 2026.
\n\u201cIf the conflict continues for six months, more than 9 million people could lose assistance, driven by a combination of higher operational costs and rising local food prices,\u201d it warned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mogadishu The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran is putting millions of people at risk of hunger. In an analysis published on Friday, the WFP said the continuation of the conflict\u2019s effect on oil prices has \u201cprofound implications\u201d for global food security. The …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":98671,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-98680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":98696,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98680\/revisions\/98696"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98671"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}