The UN chief requests the release of 11 employees arrested in Yemen

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for “immediate and unconditional liberation” of 11 United Nations staff arrested by the Houthi authorities in Yemen.

The workers were detained by the security forces during the raids on the World Food Program (WFP), the CHILDRENM FOR CHILDAY UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), the press agencies and the UN said.

Sunday raids took place in the capital, Sanaa, and the port city of Hudaydah, special envoy of the UN for Yemen Hans Grundberg.

Grundberg said Houthis already had 23 other UN workers arrested since 2021.

The Houthi authorities did not comment on Sunday’s arrests.

On Sunday, in a statement, Guterres said that he “firmly condemned arbitrary detentions of at least 11 UN staff” by the Houthis. He also condemned what he said was forced entry into the WFP and other UN premises, as well as the seizure of goods.

It is not clear why the Houthis have targeted UN workers. The organization’s staff and humanitarian workers have provided a crucial life buoy for ordinary Yemeni whose country has been suffering from one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.

One of those who were arrested above died in detention earlier this year, said Grundberg.

The Houthis have also owned around twenty Yemeni employees in the United States Embassy for three years.

“Despite the commitment and insurance supported in the past year, the arbitrary detention of UN staff, NGO workers and civil society has continued,” said Grundberg.

“These actions severely hamper wider efforts to provide help and advance peace to Yemen.”

Earlier this year, the UN suspended all movements in the areas held by the Houthis after a number of its staff.

The latest arrests intervened in the middle of increased tension after an Israeli attack killed Prime Minister Houthi on Thursday and other senior officials.

The attack has been the greatest blow to the Houthis by Israel since he started to retaliate a year ago against the missile attacks in Houthis. The movement has been shooting Israel since November 2023 in support of the Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel was fighting a war with Hamas.

The group supported by Iran has checked the capital and northwest of Yemen since its ousting of the government internationally recognized in 2015 during a civil war.

The fighting would have left more than 150,000 people dead and would have triggered a humanitarian disaster. Some 4.8 million people have been moved and 19.5 million – half of the population – need a form of aid.