The conflicts in Syria and Iraq continue to raise urgent humanitarian concerns. The UN said the number of Syrians living in besieged areas has now risen to one million. That’s double the number from a year ago. More hospitals in Aleppo were badly damaged by escalated bombing strikes this week. Officials say there are no active hospitals left in the rebel-held side of the city. In Iraq, as the battle to retake Mosul from ISIS continues, hunger is rising. Relief workers say food is being used as a weapon of war:

Anwar Khan (Islamic Relief USA): “You can kill someone with bombs, or you can starve them out. Or you can stop medicine from going there, and they can die out. It’s much cheaper if you have the patience to starve people and to have them die of disease than dropping expensive bombs on them. This is our main concern that we are seeing.”