UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock on Friday warned of the danger of widespread famine in Yemen amid an economic meltdown and fighting that threatens the lifeline of supplies for civilians.

"The Security Council has asked for an update today on the humanitarian situation in Yemen. In a word, it is bleak," said Lowcock. "We are losing the fight against famine."

The situation has deteriorated in an alarming way in recent weeks, he told the Security Council. "We may now be approaching a tipping point, beyond which it will be impossible to prevent massive loss of life as a result of widespread famine across the country."

Some 18 million of the 29 million Yemenis, including a high proportion of children, are food insecure, and more than 8 million of them severely food insecure, meaning they do not know where their next meal will come from and they need emergency food assistance to survive, said Lowcock.

The already dire humanitarian situation was battered by a marked economic deterioration, symptomized by the depreciation of the Yemeni rial by some 30 percent in the last month or so, said Lowcock.

Because almost all the food consumed in Yemen is imported, that depreciation translates directly into a sharp increase in the price of food for some 10 million Yemenis who are food insecure but who are not reached by international aid.

"We are already seeing pockets of famine-like conditions, including cases where people are eating leaves because they have no other form of sustenance," he said. "We estimate that an additional 3.5 million people may soon be added to the 8 million already severely food insecure."

The intensification of fighting in recent weeks around the Red Sea port of Hudaydah is choking the lifeline which the aid operation -- and the commercial markets -- rely on, he said.

The main Hudaydah-Sanaa road -- the principal artery used by commercial importers and humanitarian organizations to move commodities from seaports to people across the country -- has been cut off by fighting. Other routes are heavily damaged and increase transport times and therefore the cost for humanitarian organizations and private companies, he said. Enditem