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.
Iran said on Sunday (10 May) that it had sent its response to a U.S. proposal aimed at launching peace talks to end the war, as signs of tentative ...
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has cited Azerbaijan as an example of what he described as a sovereign foreign policy, recalling rem...
China’s exports grew faster than expected in April, as overseas buyers moved quickly to secure supplies a...
President Donald Trump called Iran’s response to a US war proposal “totally unacceptable” after Tehran sent its reply through med...
Russia is holding a significantly scaled-back Victory Day parade in Moscow on 9 May 2026, reflecting heightened security concerns and the ongoing w...
A new multimodal trade corridor through Central Asia is expected to cut cargo transit times between China and Afghanistan from 55 to 30 days, offering an alternative to increasingly unstable maritime shipping routes.
Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health says it is working with UNICEF to improve healthcare access in remote areas, focusing on vaccination, maternal and child health, nutrition and emergency services.
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.
Efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war appeared to stall as the two sides exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz. A reported CIA assessment suggested Tehran could withstand a U.S. naval blockade for months despite mounting sanctions and renewed Gulf attacks.
British paratroopers and military medics have been deployed to Tristan da Cunha after a suspected hantavirus case was confirmed, as first evacuation flights carrying passengers from the stricken MV Hondius cruise ship left Tenerife for Madrid and Paris.
Russia is holding a significantly scaled-back Victory Day parade in Moscow on 9 May 2026, reflecting heightened security concerns and the ongoing war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year.
Indonesian rescue teams have located two Singaporeans who went missing after Mount Dukono erupted on Friday (8 May) on the island of Halmahera, though authorities say it remains unclear whether they are alive.
The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified files on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) on Friday (8 May), following an order from President Donald Trump. U.S. officials described as a push for “unprecedented transparency”.
Iran said on Sunday (10 May) that it had sent its response to a U.S. proposal aimed at launching peace talks to end the war, as signs of tentative movement emerged around the Strait of Hormuz despite renewed security incidents across the Gulf.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has cited Azerbaijan as an example of what he described as a sovereign foreign policy, recalling remarks made by President Ilham Aliyev during talks in Yerevan, where he sharply criticised resolutions adopted against his country by the European Parliament.
SOCAR has completed the acquisition of a 99.82% stake in Italiana Petroli (IP) from API Holding after receiving all required regulatory approvals.
Fuel exports from Azerbaijan to Armenia are continuing, with eight rail wagons carrying 479 tonnes of diesel fuel dispatched as part of the latest shipment between the two South Caucasus neighbours.
A Kyrgyz–Japanese archaeological expedition has uncovered the remains of a Buddhist temple complex at the medieval settlement of Ak-Beshim, also known as Suyab, in Kyrgyzstan’s Chui Region.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment