United Nations – Sputnik. The United Nations World Food Programme stated on Sunday that the Houthis have detained one of its employees in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, in addition to several other workers in different regions of the country. It also condemned the “seizure of United Nations property” and the storming of World Food Programme buildings.
Guterres added, “I strongly reiterate my call for the immediate and unconditional release of all those detained today, as well as all UN employees and international and local NGOs, civil society, and diplomatic missions who have been arbitrarily detained since June 2024, and those held since 2021 and 2023. This ongoing arbitrary detention is unacceptable.”
In June of last year, the spokesperson for the Secretary-General, Stéphane Dujarric, reported that 11 local employees of the organization in Yemen were detained by the authorities in Northern Yemen, demanding their unconditional release at that time. Simultaneously, the internationally recognized Yemeni government condemned detentions in Sanaa and other areas under Houthi control, affecting more than ten employees from various United Nations agencies, including female staff from the Office of the Special Envoy to Yemen.
