Hunger increasingly used as weapon of war as food-related violence' surges, analysis shows

More than 20,000 documented incidents of food-related violence have occurred in the past eight years, including strikes on markets and attacks on food distribution systems. Since UN Security Council Resolution 2417 in 2018 condemned deliberate starvation of civilians, data compiled across 15 countries shows 21,403 incidents where food supplies were deliberately targeted. The recorded attacks include 1,909 military strikes on farmland and 563 strikes on water infrastructure vital for crops, affecting food security in more than 42 countries and territories. The highest numbers are in the occupied Palestinian Territory with 9,013 attacks, followed by Yemen with 1,863 and Sudan with 1,605. Recent incidents include a drone strike on a busy market in Sudan that killed 28 people, with witnesses describing deliberate targeting while civilians were present.

"Hunger is being increasingly exploited as a weapon of war with more than 20,000 documented incidents of food-related violence in the past eight years, new analysis reveals. Attacks include 1,261 strikes on markets used by families for daily groceries and 863 incidents in which food distribution systems were targeted and workers killed. The analysis looked at the period since UN resolution 2417 unanimously condemned the deliberate starvation of civilians in 2018."

"Data compiled by Insecurity Insight uncovered 21,403 incidents in 15 countries where food supplies have been deliberately targeted since 2018, when the UN security council unanimously passed a resolution condemning the unlawful denial of humanitarian aid as a tactic of warfare. Researchers discovered 1,909 military strikes on farmland, and another 563 on water infrastructure vital for crops, which affected food security in more than 42 countries and territories."

"States with the highest recorded incidents are the occupied Palestinian Territory with 9,013 attacks, followed by Yemen 1,863 incidents and Sudan, where food was targeted in 1,605 strikes. One of the most recent attacks in Sudan occurred on Tuesday when a drone struck a busy market, killing 28 people. Witnesses said the main market in the town of Ghubaysh, West Kordofan, appeared to have been deliberately targeted by the military while it was crowded with civilians."

"Other countries that documented repeated attacks on food supplies include Syria, which saw 1,538 incidents, many attributed to government or Russian military forces before the fall of the Assad regime; and Mali, where 1,415 attacks were recorded as the ruling junta struggled to maintain its grip on power in"

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