UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called for the immediate and unconditional release of 11 UN staff arrested by Houthi authorities in Yemen.
The workers were detained by security forces in raids on the World Food Programme (WFP), children's charity Unicef, and the World Health Organization (WHO), news agencies and the UN reported.
Sunday's raids took place in the capital, Sanaa, and the port city of Hudaydah, as stated by UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg.
Grundberg highlighted that the Houthis had already been holding 23 other UN workers since 2021 without providing further comments on the recent arrests.
In a statement released on Sunday, Guterres condemned the arbitrary detentions and criticized the forced entry into UN premises, as well as the seizure of property.
The underlying reasons for the arrests remain unclear, though the organization’s staff and aid workers are critical to providing support to ordinary Yemenis, who are facing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
One of those previously arrested allegedly died in detention earlier this year, according to Grundberg. The Houthis have also detained around 20 Yemeni employees of the US embassy over the past three years.
Despite ongoing communications and reassurances over the past year, arbitrary detentions of UN personnel, NGO workers, and civil society representatives have persisted, severely complicating efforts to deliver aid and pursue peace in Yemen.
The UN earlier suspended all operations in Houthi-controlled territories due to safety concerns after personnel detentions.
This latest wave of arrests coincides with heightened tensions following an Israeli attack that killed the Houthi prime minister and several high-ranking officials last week. The incident represents a significant escalation in conflict dynamics, with the Houthis retaliating against Israel for its military actions in support of Palestinians amid ongoing hostilities in Gaza.
Since 2015, the Iran-backed Houthis have been in control of Yemen's capital, triggering a civil war that has resulted in more than 150,000 fatalities and a dire humanitarian situation. Approximately 4.8 million people have been displaced, and 19.5 million people are in need of assistance, which constitutes half of Yemen's population.
