By Olivia Le Boadivan

GENEVA, June 5 (Reuters) - Conflict in the Middle East is pushing millions of people towards hunger, as rising fuel and transport costs drive up food prices, while funding shortfalls force aid agencies to scale back assistance, the United Nations World Food Programme said on Friday.

The US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February triggered a regional conflict that stretched across the Gulf to Lebanon, disrupting key shipping routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, forcing ships to change course, and severely disrupting global energy flows and supply chains.

In March, the World Food Programme projected that up to 45 million people could face acute food insecurity if oil prices remained around $100 a barrel until June. It said this scenario is now unfolding, with crude oil prices remaining above that level since early March.

Families in Afghanistan, Somalia and Sri Lanka are among the hardest hit and are facing increasing pressure due to rising fuel and food costs, loss of income and disruption to trade.

The program anticipates that 6.5 million people in Somalia—nearly a third of the population—will face severe hunger in 2026, while 17.4 million could be affected by the crisis in Afghanistan. The situation is expected to worsen, with 2.5 million Somalis and 2.3 million Afghans at risk of food insecurity if the unrest continues. Both countries rely heavily on energy and food imports.

The Middle East crisis is unfolding amid a severe funding shortfall for aid agencies. The World Food Programme anticipates that the number of people it serves globally will decrease by approximately 1.5 million in 2026, and by a further nine million if the current situation persists for six months.

In Afghanistan, rising fuel prices have increased aid transport costs by up to five times, and delivery times have increased from 10 days to as much as 75 days as trucks are forced to use alternative routes, according to the World Food Programme.

In Somalia, the program says rising jet fuel prices are increasing operating costs for the UN's humanitarian air transport service – the only safe means of reaching hard-to-reach areas.