PARIS, France (AFP) — Tens of millions of people could face hunger and starvation if fertilisers are not soon allowed through the Strait of Hormuz, the head of a United Nations (UN) task force aimed at averting a looming humanitarian crisis told AFP on Monday.

“We have a few weeks ahead of us to prevent what will likely be a massive humanitarian crisis,” Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive director of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and leader of the task force, told AFP in an interview.

“We may witness a crisis that will force 45 million more people into hunger and starvation.”