The United Nations announced on Friday that it has suspended all movements within and to areas under the control of Yemen’s Houthi forces after several UN personnel were detained in the capital, Sanaa.
According to a statement released by the UN, additional staff members were detained on Thursday by the de facto authorities in Sanaa, prompting the organization to take immediate action. “To ensure the safety and security of our personnel, all official movements into and within areas under Houthi control have been suspended until further notice,” the statement read.
The UN is actively engaging with senior Houthi representatives, demanding the unconditional and immediate release of all detained UN employees and partners. The statement did not disclose the number or nationalities of those detained. The Houthi leadership has yet to issue a formal response to the incident.
This is not the first time such detentions have occurred. In June 2024, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the release of 17 detained UN staff, 13 of whom had been arrested that month, with four others detained between 2021 and 2023. The Houthis claim the detainees are accused of espionage for the United States, although the UN has categorically denied these allegations.
The Houthis have also detained approximately 20 Yemeni employees of the US Embassy in Sanaa for the past three years. The embassy had ceased its operations in Yemen in 2014 due to the ongoing conflict.
Yemen’s nearly decade-long war between government forces and Houthi rebels has claimed over 150,000 lives and triggered one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, leaving millions in need of urgent aid. The latest detentions and operational suspensions underscore the challenges faced by international organizations trying to deliver assistance in conflict zones.
