{"id":315301,"date":"2026-04-27T12:00:46","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T11:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=315301"},"modified":"2026-04-21T05:25:49","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T04:25:49","slug":"iran-war-what-has-the-war-done-to-the-cost-of-humanitarian-aid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2026\/04\/iran-war-what-has-the-war-done-to-the-cost-of-humanitarian-aid\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran War: What Has the War Done to the Cost of Humanitarian Aid?"},"content":{"rendered":"

As\u00a0Save the Children warns of potential food shortages owing to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a much more severe risk is being posed to the most vulnerable globally.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

16 Apr 2026\u00a0<\/em>– The US<\/a>\u2013Israeli\u00a0<\/a>war on Iran has further strained the distribution of humanitarian aid and the international community has been\u00a0slow to react<\/a>\u00a0and support those more directly affected by the war.<\/p>\n

Increasing costs involved in transporting\u00a0aid to where it is needed have been a hidden consequence of the war.<\/p>\n

As\u00a0oil prices balloon<\/a>, already stretched aid budgets have had the screws tightened on them.<\/p>\n

In a new data projection, UK charity Save the Children warned that \u201cevery $5 rise in global oil prices triggered by conflict in the Middle East\u201d could wipe out the equivalent of one month of life-saving humanitarian aid for \u201cnearly 40,000 children\u201d.<\/p>\n

The organisation added that an extra $340,000 a month is now needed to secure shipping of its much needed aid.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the charity also told Middle East Eye that the delivery of \u201ccritical\u201d nutrition supplies from a supplier in New Delhi intended to support 5,000 children and 1,400 pregnant and breastfeeding women in\u00a0Afghanistan<\/a>\u00a0had been held up because of the war.<\/p>\n

\u2018Trade over aid\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since March the cost of air freight transportation for the supplies has rocketed from $240,000 to $435,000 and is now \u201cmore than double the value of the supplies\u201d themselves, the charity said.<\/p>\n

Save the Children added that \u201cteams are in the process of trying to secure other, more affordable delivery quotes\u201d.<\/p>\n

The organisation\u2019s global supply chain director Willem Zuidema told Middle East Eye that supplies are \u201cdearly needed\u201d in Afghanistan, where 21.9 million people need humanitarian assistance.<\/p>\n

He fears the country may run out of supplies by the end of the month saying it was \u201ca race against the clock\u201d.<\/p>\n

Despite being encouraged by the\u00a0ceasefire<\/a>, Save the Children emphasised that the effects of the war will be felt for months to come and even in a situation where traffic begins to move, freight carriers have told the charity \u201coil carriers<\/a>\u00a0will likely get the prioritisation\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration has been\u00a0pushing\u00a0<\/a>for a \u201ctrade over aid\u201d initiative that would prioritise business opportunities.<\/p>\n

Charities have had to get creative under the new constraints.<\/p>\n

Zuidema said that medical equipment and supplies destined for\u00a0Yemen\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0Sudan\u00a0<\/a>have been held up in Dubai, but the charity plans to drive aid to Yemen or move supplies over the border to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia before shipping it to Sudan, the site of the world\u2019s worst humanitarian crisis.<\/p>\n

Despite some US assurances that humanitarian aid would be exempt from the\u00a0US blockade<\/a>, the ripple effects continue to be felt as food prices rise.<\/p>\n