Three new areas of Somalia have been classified as having been hit by famine, the US-based Famine Early Warning Systems Network (Fewsnet) says. The UN declared a famine in two southern areas of Somalia in July. "Famine is expected to spread across all regions of the south in the coming four to six weeks," Fewsnet said in a statement. More than 11 million people have been affected by the worst drought in 60 years in the Horn of Africa. Fewsnet said that famine was "likely to persist until at least December 2011". Evidence from malnutrition and mortality rates shows that famine thresholds have been surpassed in two rural districts of the Middle Shabelle region - Balcad and Cadale - as well as the parts of the capital, Mogadishu, where there are camps for displaced people. These three areas join the Bakool and the Lower Shabelle region, where famine was declared on 20 July 2011. "A humanitarian emergency persists across all other regions of southern Somalia, and tens of thousands of excess deaths have already occurred," Fewsnet said. Source: BBC