UN agencies fear hunger deaths in Gaza

Published November 1, 2024 Updated November 1, 2024 08:51am
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli air strike on the outskirts of Tyre, in southern Lebanon, on Thursday.—AFP
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli air strike on the outskirts of Tyre, in southern Lebanon, on Thursday.—AFP

ROME: UN food agencies warned on Thursday of deadly hunger levels in 16 “hunger hotspots” in coming months, with the Palestinian territories, Sudan and South Sudan, Mali and Haiti of most concern.

Conflict is driving most of the acute food insecurity in all those areas analysed by the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Food Programme.

Extreme weather was a major factor in other regions, while economic inequality and high debt in many developing countries are hurting governments’ capacity to react, according to the joint report covering forecasts for Nov 2024 to May 2025. Humanitarian action was urgently needed to prevent starvation and death in the Palestinian territories, Sudan, South Sudan, Haiti and Mali, said the report, based on research by experts from the two Rome-based United Nations agencies.

“Without immediate humanitarian efforts and concerted international action to address severe access constraints and advocate for the de-escalation of conflict and insecurity, further starvation and loss of life are likely” in those spots, it found.

Of “very high concern”, are Nigeria, Chad, Yemen, Mozambique, Myanmar, Syria and Lebanon, it said. In all those countries, conflict was either a major driver of hunger, or a contributor.

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

Ultimate price
02 Nov, 2024

Ultimate price

AS the world marks the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists today, the dangers...
Mastung bombing
02 Nov, 2024

Mastung bombing

INSTABILITY continues to haunt Balochistan, as Friday morning’s bombing in Mastung has shown. At least nine...
Plane speak
02 Nov, 2024

Plane speak

DESPITE all its efforts to facilitate PIA’s privatisation, it seems the government only ended up being taken for a...
Seeking investment
Updated 01 Nov, 2024

Seeking investment

Foreign visits will be fruitless unless crucial structural, policy reforms directly affecting investors are focused.
State-backed terror
01 Nov, 2024

State-backed terror

OVER the past year or so, India’s reportedly malign activities in foreign countries have increasingly come under the radar, with
Shared crisis
01 Nov, 2024

Shared crisis

WITH Lahore experiencing unprecedented levels of smog, the Punjab government has announced a series of “green...