UN warns of food insecurity in Gaza, Haiti, Mali, and Sudan

United Nations agencies warned on Wednesday that the populations of Gaza, Haiti, Mali, South Sudan, and Sudan may face "catastrophic levels" of food insecurity by October if humanitarian actions and international efforts to reach the affected areas are not undertaken.

The United Nations has been warning for months that famine threatens Gaza.

In a new report on "hunger hotspots" around the world, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) indicated that more than one million people, or half of Gaza's population, are at risk of facing catastrophic food insecurity by mid-July.

This situation is the result of "the devastating effects of ongoing conflict, severe movement restrictions, and the collapse of local agricultural food systems," according to the two agencies, which are also concerned about the risk of food insecurity spreading to Lebanon and Syria.

In South Sudan, "the decline in local food production linked to the devaluation of the currency leads to rising food prices, worsened by the risk of floods and recurring internal conflicts," according to the report, which assesses the state of food security in South Sudan from June to October.

The document notes that the situation in Mali is deteriorating due to "escalating conflicts," exacerbated by the "withdrawal" of the United Nations mission. In Sudan, agricultural production is affected by violence and looting, and imports are hindered by material and financial difficulties, leading to rising food prices, as mentioned in the report.

The FAO and WFP added Haiti to the list of the most concerning areas (the previous list was from October 2023), where increasing armed gang violence "leads to greater disruption of supplies, increases internal displacement, and affects humanitarian aid access."

AFP