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A belt of unresolved wars from Sudan to Pakistan is colliding with collapsing currencies and a global food-price surge
Sudan's civil war entered a new phase this week with RSF drone strikes on El Obeid's markets and water infrastructure killing at least 45 civilians, while IPC-confirmed famine persists in El Fasher and Kadugli and 33.7 million people need aid — the highest figure for any country in 2026. Iran's war with the US and Israel re-escalated after the June ceasefire collapsed: Hormuz transits have fallen from roughly 110 ships per day to 15, choking Gulf trade. Yemen's Houthi internal offensive shattered a four-year truce on July 3, and Lebanon's Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire is failing with 608 killed since the June truce and IDF operations expanding beyond agreed lines. A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia on August 14, exposing roughly 870,000 people to severe shaking.
The connection between these crises is not abstract. Hormuz traffic at 15 ships per day directly chokes the Gulf grain and fertilizer imports that East Africa and the Horn depend on — the same Horn where drought persists across Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya and where 7.8 million South Sudanese face crisis-level food insecurity. FAO's July 2026 food price index shows oils at their highest level in years, and the five worst-collapsing currencies — Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, Sudan, and Yemen — are all countries either at war or in structural breakdown, meaning import-dependent populations cannot absorb price shocks. Sudan's RSF has used starvation as a weapon; Iran's war has throttled the shipping lane that feeds the region. The compounding effect is a man-made famine corridor from the Sahel to the Arabian Peninsula.
Watch items
- Sudan — RSF ground assault on El Obeid imminent
- Iran — Hormuz blockade choking Gulf grain imports
- Lebanon — Hezbollah ceasefire collapsing, IDF expanding north