US  –  Starvation being used as a weapon of war has become the new normal, according to Save the Children. Its analysis shows more than half a million infants in conflict zones could die of malnutrition by the end of the year if they do not receive treatment, the equivalent of one every minute.

The charity makes its own estimates using UN data, and projects that 4.5 million under-fives will need treatment for life-threatening hunger this year in the most dangerous conflict zones an increase of 20% since 2016. At current rates, only one in three will receive treatment, and 590,000 could die as a result. The data emerged ahead of Tuesday’s launch of the UN annual report on food security, which last year warned that global hunger was rising for the first time since the turn of the century, fuelled by conflict and climate change.

“The broad story is we’ve seen a drastic increase in the number of children at risk of death as a result of hunger related problems” said Kevin Watkins, the CEO of Save the Children. “Using starvation as a weapon of war has become the new normal, with devastating consequences for children. From Yemen to South Sudan the failure to protect children from hunger is putting children at risk.”(The Guardian)…[+]