Feuds in Mideast and N Africa opening a wide 'hunger gap,' UN warns

"That's six times higher than the share of the population that was undernourished in countries not affected by strife," a FAO statement said.
It added that "severe food insecurity" in conflict-affected countries is now double that of other countries.
"When countries in the region are suffering from an escalation of conflicts, the aim to tackle the region's deepest concerns of malnutrition, water scarcity and climate change becomes more challenging, but at the same more urgent," FAO Assistant Director General Abdessalam Ould Ahmed said.
"Only through improved cooperation and solidarity will the region be able to end conflicts and violence and get back to development," he added at the launch of the report in Cairo.
The report names Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Libya as the region's countries where long-running strife has taken a high toll on people.
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