WFP delivers lifesaving assistance to families caught in conflict in Afghanistan

WFP is delivering immediate life-saving food to over 20,000 families displaced by the conflict. Initially, impacted families are receiving fortified biscuits to address urgent food needs. The most vulnerable will then receive two months' worth of food or cash assistance. WFP will also provide specialized food products for children, and pregnant and breastfeeding women to support their essential nutrition.

Despite the dangerous conditions in the area, WFP has resumed operations in most border areas.

In addition, assistance to displaced families is going to reach people across eight provinces. Beginning in the east with Nuristan, Kunar and Nangarhar, moving south through Paktya, Khost and Paktika, and continuing into Zabul and Kandahar along Afghanistan's southern border.

"This is crisis upon crisis: after enduring shocks like job losses and earthquakes, families already struggling with hunger-many with malnourished mothers and children-now find themselves on the frontlines of conflict," said John Aylieff, WFP Country Director in Afghanistan. "We cannot afford to look away: Afghanistan is caught between two conflicts, and any further instability will push millions deeper into hunger while adding strain to a region already on the brink."

The closure of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border since last October and the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East are creating severe challenges for WFP's emergency response in Afghanistan.

WFP is adapting quickly. For example, to sustain delivery of assistance, WFP is working to activate the Lapis Lazuli Corridor, which links Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan, onward to Afghanistan. While this corridor provides a critical alternative, it does involve longer lead times and significant additional cost.

Also, Iran's recent ban on food and agricultural exports is already driving prices up in Afghanistan. A sustained export ban will likely lead to shortages of essential goods, initially concentrated in border areas but eventually spreading nationwide as supplies diminish. With trade routes disrupted on two sides-Iran and Pakistan-Afghanistan's markets face mounting pressure, raising the risk of reduced availability and affordability of staples.

As 2026 unfolds, Afghanistan is gripped by three converging crises: escalating hostilities along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, impact of the conflict in Iran, and an unprecedented hunger and malnutrition emergency.

One in three Afghans-17.4 million people-now require urgent food assistance. Malnutrition among children is soaring, with 3.7 million expected to need treatment this year alone. With conflict adding fuel to the fire, hunger and malnutrition will only intensify. Afghanistan remains one of the world's most severe hunger hotspots, and WFP urgently calls for support to sustain life-saving operations.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

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