840,000 at risk of starvation in S. Sudan's northern region: WFP

About 840,000 people in war-torn South Sudan's Northern Bahr el Ghazal state bordering Sudan are at risk of starvation due to poor rains and loss of purchasing power after over two years of civil war, the World Food Programme (WFP) said Friday.

WFP Country Director Joyce Kanyangwa Luma told Xinhua in an interview that the food security situation in the state was dire.

"Northern Bhar El Gahazal has seen very high levels of food insecurity unprecedented, about six out of 10 people were classified as severely food insecure, and one in three children are suffering from acute malnutrition," Luma revealed.

"We are targeting about 840,000 people in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, for the first time we had to do airdrops," she said.

Unlike other regions like Upper Nile that have been devastated by the war, Northern Bahr el Ghazal has experienced uneasy calm with no major fighting. Forces loyal to sacked First Vice President Riek Machar claim presence in the state.

However renewed fighting between Machar's forces and government troops since early July has led to skyrocketing food prices.

"People have just lost their purchasing power; even if traders brought in food, people would not be able to buy it," Luma said.

The WFP estimates a total of 4.8 million people in South Sudan are food insecure and the number could increase following the new waves of violence. Endit