The World Food Programme’s Afghanistan country director has said the cost of transporting food aid into the country has tripled, as global shipping disruption delays supplies for vulnerable children.
The Guardian reported that John Aylieff, the World Food Programme (WFP) country director in Afghanistan, said the agency is now facing significantly higher costs to bring food into the landlocked country.
According to The Guardian, WFP supplies of “fortified biscuits” are being transported by road from Dubai through seven countries to Afghanistan. The report said the agency is avoiding its usual route through the Strait of Hormuz, adding three weeks to the journey.
Aylieff said the delays are already affecting children in Afghanistan.
“Afghan children today are going hungry as a result,” Aylieff told The Guardian, adding that many could die.
The report said aid organisations are calling for a humanitarian corridor through the Strait of Hormuz, as rising oil prices and shipping disruption slow the delivery of food, medicine and fuel to countries already facing humanitarian crises.
The Guardian said the disruption is linked to volatility in global oil prices following the U.S. and Israel’s conflict with Iran. It reported that oil prices rose from about $60 a barrel at the start of the year, peaking at nearly $120, while recently standing at around $111.
A WFP spokesperson told The Guardian that rising oil prices could prevent the agency from reaching around 1.5 million people worldwide in the coming months.
The newspaper also reported that WFP is attempting to reroute approximately 93,000 tonnes of food, including fortified biscuits and nutritional supplements, to communities in urgent need.
AnewZ contacted the Afghan government spokesperson for comment on the reported price increases but had not received a response by the time of publication.
So far, there has been no public reaction from the Afghan de facto authorities to The Guardian’s report. However, Kabul has previously acknowledged the country’s worsening food security crisis and earlier this year announced a UN- and Asian Development Bank-backed programme to support vulnerable Afghan families.
Tensions are escalating in the Gulf after new attacks linked to maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. forces say they struck Iranian fast...
The World Health Organization said it suspects rare human-to-human transmission of hantavirus among close contacts on a cruise ship off Cape Verde,...
A Russian overnight missile and drone attack on Ukraine’s gas production facilities has killed five people, including two rescue workers, Ukr...
European leaders gathered in Yerevan on 4–5 May for the European Political Community (EPC) summit and the first EU–Armenia summit, plac...
The World Food Programme’s Afghanistan country director has said the cost of transporting food aid into the country has tripled, as global sh...
A court in Sydney is set to review a non-publication order in the case of former Australian SAS soldier Ben Roberts-Smith, who is accused of war crime murder in Afghanistan.
Pakistan has accused Afghan border forces of deliberately targeting civilians during renewed clashes along the border, saying at least nine people have been killed and 15 injured over the past two days.
Afghan and Russian officials have discussed expanding political, economic and security cooperation during talks in Kabul, Afghan ministries said.
Afghanistan could lose more than 25,000 female teachers and health workers by 2030 if restrictions on girls’ education and women’s employment continue, the United Nations Children’s Fund has warned.
A 77-year-old man and a 63-year-old woman were killed on Monday (4 May), after a man drove a car into a crowd on a pedestrianised street in the the eastern German city of Leipzig, authorities said.
Iran warned Armerican forces on Monday (4 May) not to enter the Strait of Hormuz, after the U.S. said it had launched a mission to try and reopen the sea passage. Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister said there was no military solution to the Middle East conflict.
Tensions are escalating in the Gulf after new attacks linked to maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. forces say they struck Iranian fast boats at sea following hostile manoeuvres, after Iran was blamed for an earlier attack on a UAE oil facility.
Medics are working to evacuate two people with symptoms of the deadly respiratory illness, hantavirus, from a luxury cruise ship being held off West Africa, after three people died and several others fell ill, officials have said.
What is hantavirus? Three people have died and three are still ill on a Netherlands-based cruise ship after it was hit by a suspected outbreak of the deadly virus, according to authorities on Sunday.
European leaders gathered in Yerevan on 4–5 May for the European Political Community (EPC) summit and the first EU–Armenia summit, placing the South Caucasus and its fragile peace process at the centre of regional diplomacy.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has said it is difficult to assess the U.S. response to its proposal, citing Washington’s history of “excessive and unreasonable” demands.
Türkiye and Armenia have agreed to restore the historic Ani Bridge, in a move described as “symbolic and concrete cooperation” by Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas’s planned visits to Yerevan and Baku framed the 8th European Political Community summit on 4 May, as European leaders focused on fragile South Caucasus peace efforts and rising geopolitical tensions.
At a time when geopolitical tensions continue to ripple across multiple regions, from Ukraine to the Middle East, the South Caucasus once again finds itself at the crossroads of diplomacy and uncertainty.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment