How the Middle East conflict is worsening Somalia’s slide into famine

AfricaHow the Middle East conflict is worsening Somalia’s slide into famineSomalia is among the most exposed to ripple effects from the Strait of Hormuz crisis due to the combined shocks of extreme weather, aid cuts and import dependence.Residents of the Maacani Camp in Mogadishu, Somalia are struggling to survive in tents under limited conditions as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz cause serious disruptions in the passage of ships on May 5.Abuukar Mohamed Muhidin / Anadolu via Getty ImagesShareAdd NBC News to GoogleMay 17, 2026, 6:56 AM EDTBy Freddie ClaytonMustafe Denbil runs an agricultural shop and farm in northern Somalia, but three months after ordering fertilizer and pesticides, the supplies his business needs are still stranded in Dubai.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.Denbil, chairman of Horn Gardens in the city of Hargeisa, says the delays, driven by disruptions linked to the war in the Middle East, are now hitting farmers and families across the country, as soaring food and fuel prices deepen an already severe hunger crisis and push Somalia closer to famine.“Now, when families come to our store, they may not get all what they need as they used to five months ago,” he told NBC News by phone. “The small farmers cannot even afford to buy at this new price.”The East African nation was already facing one of its worst food security crises in years.Six million people, about 31% of the population, are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity, including 1.9 million people facing emergency conditions, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), the world’s leading body on hunger, said this week.Now, poor rains and renewed climate shocks are again pushing harvest expectations down, while global supply chain disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict are pushing up fertilizer and food costs, the body warned.These conditions, the United Nations and aid agencies say, could r...