{"success":true,"data":{"id":"98e01c7b-6189-4fd6-97d7-86e3810c90e8","title":"Nigerian children pay the price for the Iran war as malnutrition and poverty surge","summary":"US Edition Change Support Now × \"Clear search box\") Custom Search Sort by Relevance Date NewsNews World CupWorld Cup SportsSports CultureCulture LifestyleLifestyle MoneyMoney TravelTravel PremiumPremium More More Thank you for registering Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the si...","content":"US Edition Change\n\nSupport Now\n\n[×](javascript:void(0) \"Clear search box\")\n\nCustom Search\n\nSort by\n\nRelevance\n\nDate\n\n*   News[News](https://www.independent.co.uk/us)\n\n*   World Cup[World Cup](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup)\n\n*   Sports[Sports](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport)\n\n*   Culture[Culture](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment)\n\n*   Lifestyle[Lifestyle](https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style)\n\n*   Money[Money](https://www.independent.co.uk/us/money)\n\n*   Travel[Travel](https://www.independent.co.uk/us/travel)\n\n*   Premium[Premium](https://www.independent.co.uk/independentpremium)\n\nMore\n\nMore\n\n### Thank you for registering\n\nPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in\n\n# Nigerian children pay the price for the Iran war as malnutrition and poverty surge\n\n## Health workers in northern Nigeria say more children are relapsing into malnutrition and cite knock-on effects from the war in the Middle East\n\n[Ope Adetayo](https://www.independent.co.uk/author/ope-adetayo)Sunday 19 July 2026 06:14 BST\n\n*   Copy link  \n*   Bookmark  \n\n## Bookmark popover\n\nRemoved from bookmarks\n\nClose popover\n\nShow all 5\n\n### Your support helps us to tell the story\n\nFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.\n\nAt such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.\n\nThe Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.\n\n**Your support makes all the difference.**\n\nMaryam Aminu was hardly surprised when the last of her six children was diagnosed with malnutrition in April for a second time. She was barely feeding the 18-month-old regularly, let alone with nutritious foods.\n\nAlthough the family in northwest Nigeria has struggled with economic hardship, their situation deteriorated after February, when her husband, Shehu Aminu, lost his job as a taxi driver due to a spike in the retail price of petrol caused by the war in [Iran](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/iran).\n\n“When she was diagnosed the second time, even though I suspected it, I was sad and angry because I knew why,” Aminu said in the living area of their unvarnished two-bedroom house in the quiet town of Kware, Sokoto, as ash from the coal stove billowed into the room. “Times are tough, and the food is not consistent.”\n\n[Children](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/children) relapsing into malnutrition has become an increasingly common occurrence in the state and across northern Nigeria, according to local health and aid workers, who cite knock-on effects from the Iran war.\n\nNorthern Nigeria, one of the world’s poorest regions, is already under pressure from an insurgency crisis. Now, the conflict in the [Middle East](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/middle-east) has worsened food security for millions of people living in poverty, especially children.","source_name":"The Independent","source_url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/iran-unicef-children-donald-trump-middle-east-b3017584.html","url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/iran-unicef-children-donald-trump-middle-east-b3017584.html","author":"Ope Adetayo","author_name":"Ope Adetayo","published_at":"2026-07-19T05:14:00.000Z","publication_date":"2026-07-19T05:14:00.000Z","image_url":"https://static.independent.co.uk/2026/07/19/06/Nigeria_Iran_War_Malnutrition__5239.jpg?quality=75&width=640&height=614&fit=bounds&format=pjpg&crop=16%3A9%2Coffset-y0.5&auto=webp","category":"world","topic":"world","tags":[],"political_bias":null,"bias_score":null,"confidence_score":null,"credibility_score":null,"factual_quality":null,"reading_time":3,"word_count":489,"view_count":0,"breaking":false,"breaking_news":false,"ai_analysis":null,"fact_check_status":"unverified","archive_status":"hot","language":null}}