WFP on severe food crisis in northern Ethiopia

The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) on Monday released footage that showed the severe food crisis in war-hit northern Ethiopia.

According to Gordon Weiss, WFP's spokesperson, 5 million people have been affected and their situation is bound to get worse.

"Unless the fighting dies down, we can only see the situation deteriorating extensively in the next weeks or months," he says.

Weiss further stressed the fact that the WFP has been unable to access areas that need help that were worsened by numerous checkpoints and the blowing up of crucial bridges needed for aid distribution.

Moreover, WFP seems to have run out of supplies meant to serve people in need.

"We don't have any food stocks at the moment to plan with or to distribute. Whatever we have is currently being distributed or has already been distributed. So, what we are looking at going forward is a difficult situation for us to keep providing services for our communities here," said Satyen Tait, a staff member from WFP's Ethiopia office.

According to WFP, 400,000 people are on the edge of famine-like conditions and the numbers are expected to rise.