Mideast war worsens conflict between elephants and villagers in Sri Lanka

NPR | By Diaa Hadid

Published May 9, 2026 at 5:09 PM EDT

Conflict between farmers and elephants in Sri Lanka has grown worse as food and fuel are scarcer due to war in the Middle East.

Diaa Hadid

Diaa Hadid chiefly covers Pakistan and Afghanistan for NPR News. She is based in NPR's bureau in Islamabad. There, Hadid and her team were awarded a Murrow in 2019 for hard news for their story on why abortion rates in Pakistan are among the highest in the world.

See stories by Diaa Hadid

More from Delaware Public Media

Tracking the hot-button issues driving this year's midterms politics

Elena Burnett, Domenico Montanaro, Emily Feng

Record high oil prices, war with Iran, and controversial immigration policies are just some of the issues for voters. NPR's Domenico Montanaro talks about covering this year's complex midterms.
War with Iran has aviation costs sky high. Are there alternatives to jet fuel?

Emily Feng, Emily Kwong, Henry Larson

As the blockade of the Straight of Hormuz has sent jet fuel costs and airplane seat prices soaring. NPR's Emily Kwong looks at the viability of alternatives such as sustainable aviation fuel.
What to know about the Canvas hack of student data

Sequoia Carrillo, Emily Feng

Millions of students in universities and K-12 districts had their data compromised this week as a hack took down Canvas, a classroom management tool used all over the country.