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Three wars overlap a drought belt, and the money for response is thinning
Sudan, Palestine and Yemen anchor the worst of today's picture. Sudan's war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces continues with no ceasefire, after a UN fact-finding mission determined in February 2026 that the RSF committed genocide around El Fasher. Some 33.7 million Sudanese need assistance in 2026 (OCHA, 2026 HNRP). In Ethiopia, the army says it repelled fresh attacks and residents report Tigray's capital is out of cash (BBC, 24 Sep 2026), while war with Eritrea is not confirmed. Yemen's civil war re-escalated in July 2026, ending a four-year truce.
The connective tissue is food and finance. FAO's August 2026 food price index stands high on the back of surging vegetable oils, and drought now spans the Horn, the Sahel and even much of Europe, squeezing the same import-dependent states already at war. Iran's re-escalated conflict keeps Strait of Hormuz traffic at roughly 15 transits daily against about 110 pre-war, throttling Gulf food and fuel imports into East Africa's drought zone. Collapsed currencies in Sudan, Yemen and Venezuela price ordinary households out of whatever food still reaches markets. Aid donors, meanwhile, are stretched across Gaza, Sudan and Yemen simultaneously.
Watch items
- Sudan — RSF advance beyond El Fasher toward Kordofan supply hubs
- Ethiopia — Fresh Tigray fighting risks new displacement and cash collapse
- Haiti — Gang Suppression Force at 1,000 of 5,500 authorized personnel