Syria - Severe food shortages in parched eastern region

Thousands of people have fled drought-affected eastern Syria and those that remain are struggling to survive on limited food stocks, according to a UN report released at the end of February. The third consecutive year of drought has caused widespread food insecurity in what has long been the poorest part of the country. "This has led to a dramatic decrease in communities' resilience capacity," said Selly Muzammil, spokesperson for the World Food Programme (WFP) in Syria. According to the report - billed as a mid-term assessment of the Syrian Drought Response Plan (SDRP) formulated in August 2009 - 65,000 families have left the region since early 2009. Those who remain face chronic food shortages.