.jpeg)
The Ansar Allah Group (Houthis) must immediately release the dozens of humanitarian personnel currently held in its custody
Mwatana for Human Rights said in a statement today, coinciding with the International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members, observed annually on 25 March to call for protection of United Nations and humanitarian personnel, that Ansar Allah Group (Houthis) must immediately release the dozens of Yemeni staff employed by UN agencies and by international and local organizations who have been arbitrarily detained by the group’s authorities for months. Mwatana called on the group’s authorities to commence constructive dialogue with the humanitarian community to address all outstanding issues, to strengthen humanitarian action, to ensure the protection of humanitarian personnel, and to create a safe environment that enables humanitarian organizations to carry out their work without threat or intimidation.
Between 30 May and 7 June 2023, the security apparatus of Ansar Allah carried out a series of sudden raids on the homes and offices of staff employed by international and local humanitarian and development organizations in the capital, Sana’a. Their phones and electronic devices were seized and searched, and they were detained without being informed of the charges against them or the locations of their detention. These operations were frequently executed at night after surrounding the homes and offices.
The detention campaigns targeted female and male staff working for international and local humanitarian and development organizations, UN offices, and diplomatic missions, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights(OHCHR), the Office of the UN Special Envoy for Yemen(UNSEY), the National Democratic Institute(NDI), the Social Fund for Development(SFD), Partners Yemen, the Civil Coalition for Peace(CCP), DeepRoot, Resonate Yemen Foundation, Percent Foundation, the World Food Programme (WFP), Oxfam, the World Health Organization(WHO), UNESCO, and the Royal Netherlands Embassy(RNE), in addition to a number of other international and local organizations. These actions were part of broad security operations that included raids on staff residences and on UN and NGO premises.
On 10 June 2024, the security and intelligence service of the Ansar Allah Group’s authorities released a lengthy statement announcing what it described as the uncovering of an “US–Israeli spy cell,” followed by broadcast on Al-Masirah TV of video recordings it said were confessions by some detainees. These recordings were accompanied by a media campaign that included serious accusations against humanitarian institutions and their personnel.
In October 2024, twelve former employees of the US Embassy, after years of detention, were referred to the Specialized Criminal Prosecution; six of them were interrogated before proceedings stalled and were later referred to the Specialized Criminal Court in expedited procedures that did not meet minimum fair-trial guarantees. Nevertheless, many staff employed by international and local organizations remain arbitrarily detained without a clear legal basis or formal charges, and without access to legal assistance or fair-trial guarantees, despite repeated appeals from the United Nations and local and international human rights organizations for their release.
In late August 2025, Sana’a and other areas under Ansar Allah Group control witnessed one of the broadest detention campaigns targeting staff of UN agencies and offices following raids. According to UN statements, at least ten UN staff were arrested in a single day, with the number later rising to 21 UN staff. UN data indicate that the total number of UN personnel detained by the group’s authorities reached 73 staff members, some of whom have been held for more than three years without legal proceedings or formal charges.
The UN condemned the death of a World Food Programme staff member on 10 February 2025 while in detention; the staff member had been arbitrarily arrested on 23 January of the same year.
Radhia Al-Mutawakel, Chairperson of Mwatana for Human Rights, said: “The arbitrary detention campaigns targeting dozens of staff of local and international organizations lack any lawful legal basis and reflect a recurring pattern of targeting humanitarian workers, even though their work is clearly protected under international law, including the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, which obliges all authorities and parties to ensure the freedom and safety of UN personnel and not to subject them to detention or intimidation outside the law.”
Al-Mutawakel added: “The arbitrary detentions and the blatant violations of legal procedures and fair-trial guarantees that accompanied them have consequences that go beyond the detained individuals and their families. These measures have negatively affected all humanitarian programs in areas controlled by Ansar Allah (Houthis), prompting many humanitarian organizations to suspend activities and close offices in those areas. This situation is likely to exacerbate the humanitarian crisis, particularly given Yemen’s protracted conflict and the continuing deterioration of the population’s economic and living conditions.”
The UN Secretary-General has expressed deep concern about these practices and rejected the accusations leveled against UN and humanitarian personnel, stressing that such allegations endanger their lives and impede life-saving operations. He called for the immediate and unconditional release of all detained staff, the return of seized assets and property, and the evacuation of UN premises.
Mwatana for Human Rights renewed its call on Ansar Allah Group (Houthis) to immediately release all detained humanitarian personnel, affirming that their continued detention constitutes a gross violation of international humanitarian law and undermines the ability of humanitarian organizations to deliver life-saving assistance. The organization emphasized the need to begin constructive dialogue with the humanitarian community to address all outstanding issues, insisted on respecting humanitarian action and ensuring the protection of its personnel, and urged the creation of a safe environment that allows humanitarian organizations to perform their duties without threat or intimidation.
Mwatana also called on the international community and the United Nations to intensify diplomatic efforts and pressure for the release of detainees, to ensure respect for humanitarian principles in Yemen, and to underline the need to shield humanitarian personnel from any political pressures or conflict-related reprisals, and not to use them as tools in political disputes, thereby safeguarding the continuity of their humanitarian role free from targeting or politicization.
