Malnutrition rates in Syria’s northeast have reached alarming heights, international aid agencies have warned. The dry northeast region of Syria is plagued with malnutrition levels that are one and a half times higher than in the rest of the country, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). (..) According to a 2008 World Food Program report, the rising price of food is having a “catastrophic effect” on Syria’s economy, and is exasperating the already insufficient food resources left after the drought.