UN World Food Programme warns Lebanon facing food security crisis due to Iran war

GENEVA- Lebanon is facing a food security crisis as the Iran war disrupts supplies of goods inside the country, the United Nations World Food Programme said on Friday.

A fragile two-day-old ceasefire has halted the campaign of U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran, but it has not so far calmed a parallel war waged by Israel against Iran's Hezbollah allies in Lebanon.

"What we're witnessing is not just a displacement crisis, it is rapidly becoming a food security crisis," said World Food Programme country director Allison Oman, speaking via video link from Beirut.

She warned that food was becoming increasingly unaffordable due to rising prices and demand among displaced families.

PRICE OF VEGETABLES HAS SOARED

The price of vegetables has soared by more than 20% and bread prices have increased by 17% since March 2, the WFP said.

"What we're now seeing is a very worrying combination: prices are rising, incomes are disrupted and demand is increasing as displacement continues for many families," Oman stated.

Lebanon faces a two-layered crisis, in which some markets have fully collapsed - especially in the south, where more than 80% of markets are no longer functioning - while those in Beirut are under increasing strain, Oman said.

Many traders in conflict-affected areas in southern parts of Lebanon are reporting less than one week of essential food stocks remaining, she added.

The ability to deliver food aid into hard-to-reach areas in the south, which has faced heavy bombardment by Israeli airstrikes since March 2, was becoming increasingly difficult.

While the Qasmiyeh bridge, which was previously struck, is now operational, movement remains difficult. Ten WFP convoys have reached the south to provide aid to some of the estimate 50,000 to 150,000 in need of humanitarian support in that part of the country.

"This escalation is pushing vulnerable communities even closer to the edge," said Oman, adding that, due to this latest escalation, about 900,000 people across Lebanon were facing food insecurity - a number that was set to rise.

-Olivia Le Poidevin, Editing by Miranda Murray and Alex Richardson/Reuters