Top North Korean official says his country faces major food shortages, blaming weather and sanctions

A senior North Korean official says his country is facing dwindling food supplies and has been forced to cut food rations for its people, according to a memo obtained by NBC News. 

The memo, written by Kim Song, the North Korean ambassador to the United Nations, appears to be an unusual admission that the country lacks enough food to feed its people, a situation that Kim blamed on a combination of natural disasters and the sanctions regime that is making it difficult to obtain farming equipment.

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Hungry Venezuelans seek food at Colombian border, as Maduro blocks entry of supplies

Over 50,000 Venezuelans cross the Simón Bolívar Bridge into Colombia on a daily basis to pick up much needed supplies including diapers, medicine and toilet paper. The families are hungry and desperate to feed their children. 

On Thursday, much-needed aid arrived at the Colombian-Venezuelan border, provided and facilitated by the United States Agency for International Development. 

Several truckloads of humanitarian aid, including food, medical supplies and hygiene kits, were shuttled into Cúcuta. Colombian police were on hand to help store the supplies in a warehouse, just across a bridge from Venezuela. 

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has refused to receive the aid. Earlier this week, Maduro said, “We are not a country of beggars.”

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