Syrian food crisis to escalate without ceasefire: WFP

The United Nations food agency has warned that the ongoing food crisis in Syria could deteriorate without a humanitarian pause in the conflict there.

Speaking at a press conference in the Australian capital of Canberra on Friday, the World Food Program (WFP) Executive Director, Ertharin Cousin said that the war in Syria had crippled its food production.

"Unfortunately, what we are seeing is we have more people who are food insecure both inside and outside Syria because of the length of the conflict and we aren't receiving the resources that we received even last year at this time for the support of those refugees," she said. 

The official added that the UN agency was forced to cut back on assistance to thousands of Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) after an appeal for a ceasefire to enable Syrians feed themselves went unheeded.

"We're very disappointed that the calls for a cease in the fighting to support the harvest was not heeded by the parties," Cousin said, adding, "That wheat that is harvested cannot be brought across lines of conflict into the area where it is needed most by people who are suffering now into a fifth year of this conflict." 

The UN food agency had earlier called for a ceasefire between Syria's warring factions in May to let farmers grow and harvest their crops in the country’s northeast, and move their produce to markets such as those in the northwestern province of Aleppo and the western province of Homs.

The remarks come as the UN food agency is already struggling financially to reach out to millions of Syrian war refugees.

The WFP itself is facing a massive funding shortfall for Syria because of an increase in demands, and a drop in international donations.

A shortage of funds and the cash crisis have recently prompted the UN agency to halve its food aid for about 800,000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon. 

The WFP also says about half a million refugees in Jordan may also see their food support cut off, if funds do not arrive by August. 

Sources say the UN food agency is 81 percent underfunded and needs USD 139 million to keep helping Syrian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Iraq and Turkey until September. 

UN sources say while 3.88 million Syrians have left their country since the start of the conflict in 2011, some 7.6 million people have also become internally displaced.

Syria's foreign-sponsored crisis and violence fueled by Takfiri terrorist groups have so far left over 230,000 people dead across the country over the past four years.

Western countries, led by the US, and their regional allies, particularly Saudi Arabia, have been supporting the militants in Syria for the overthrow of the Syrian government.

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