WFP warns Middle East conflict could push 45 million toward hunger
What's new: Aid delivery in Afghanistan now can take up to 75 days, and WFP expects to reach 1.5 million fewer people in 2026.
The World Food Programme warned on June 5 that the widening Middle East conflict is driving millions closer to hunger as higher fuel and transport costs lift food prices and squeeze humanitarian operations. The agency said its March scenario of up to 45 million people falling into acute food insecurity is now taking shape, with crude prices holding above $100 a barrel since early March. Afghanistan, Somalia and Sri Lanka are among the hardest hit. WFP projected 17.4 million people in Afghanistan and 6.5 million in Somalia could face severe hunger in 2026, with millions more at risk if disruptions continue. In Afghanistan, aid transport costs have risen as much as fivefold and delivery times have stretched from 10 days to as many as 75 days as trucks use alternative corridors.