Huthis Must Release Detained UN and Civil Society Staff in Yemen

Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, are demanding that Huthi authorities in Yemen immediately release dozens of arbitrarily detained UN and civil society staff. As of February 2026, 73 UN employees and numerous other humanitarian workers remain in custody, according to a joint call for release issued on June 6, 2026.

The crackdown on aid workers has escalated since May 31, 2024, when Huthi forces conducted a series of raids in territories under their control. These initial operations resulted in the arbitrary detention of 13 UN staff and at least 50 employees from international and Yemeni civil society organizations.

Since those May 2024 raids, the Huthis have detained dozens more staff members while releasing only seven individuals. By February 2026, the number of UN staff held in detention rose to 73. All of the detained UN personnel are Yemeni nationals.

How are the detentions affecting humanitarian aid in Yemen?

The arrest of humanitarian workers has directly hindered the delivery of lifesaving assistance to populations in critical need. Human Rights Watch found in January 2026 that these detentions have exacerbated an already dire humanitarian crisis within the country.

The impact is particularly severe regarding food security. In a global report on hunger, the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) warned that acute food insecurity is expected to worsen between November 2025 and May 2026. The report projected that populations in four districts under Huthi control could face “Catastrophe.”

“That the Huthis are detaining aid workers while hunger worsens demonstrates the utter disregard they have for the people living within their territories in northern Yemen,” said Niku Jafarnia, Yemen and Bahrain researcher at Human Rights Watch. “They should immediately release all those they have arbitrarily detained and work on fulfilling people’s basic needs.”

Niku Jafarnia, Human Rights Watch

What is the condition of the detained staff?

Reports indicate a pattern of severe ill-treatment and a lack of basic legal and medical protections. Many detainees were arrested without warrants and were subjected to forced disappearances for months. While some have received medical attention, others with serious health conditions have been denied care.

Legal access is almost non-existent. Human Rights Watch reported that no sources they spoke with were aware of any detainees having access to lawyers. This lack of counsel persists even though the cases of three UN employees were transferred to the Specialized Criminal Court in December 2025.

The safety of those in custody is a primary concern following multiple deaths in Huthi detention. On February 11, 2025, an aid worker from the World Food Programme died in custody. This follows the death of the safety and security director at Save the Children, who was arrested in September 2023 and died on October 25, 2023, after being held incommunicado.

Why are the Huthi authorities targeting aid workers?

The arrests have been paired with a Huthi-led media campaign. Authorities have accused humanitarian organizations and their staff of “espionage” and “conspiring” against the interests of the country through their projects.

Amnesty International has documented the use of spying charges since 2015 as a tool to silence peaceful dissent and persecute political opponents. Families of some current detainees report that their relatives were forced to make video confessions. In 2024, the Huthis released videos of detainees “confessing” to espionage and other charges.

Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the former UN Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen have all documented the use of torture by Huthi authorities to extract information or confessions from detainees.

What is the broader context of the crackdown?

The current wave of arrests is part of a wider effort to restrict civic space in northern Yemen. This crackdown has targeted not only humanitarian workers but also journalists, activists, and human rights defenders.

Other high-profile detentions include four Yemeni staff members from UNESCO and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). These individuals were arrested in 2021 and 2023 and remain arbitrarily detained and held incommunicado.

“The continued crackdown on civic space in northern Yemen, in which the Huthis have arrested scores, including humanitarian workers, human rights defenders, journalists, and activists, has to end,” said Diala Haidar, Yemen researcher at Amnesty International. “All those arbitrarily detained should be immediately released.”

Diala Haidar, Amnesty International

The loss of staff comes at a time when humanitarian operations are already struggling. Funding cuts from donor states, specifically the United States, have put the health and human rights of millions of Yemenis at risk, increasing the reliance on the few aid workers still operating on the ground.

Amna Guellali, research director at the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, urged the international community and UN leadership to move beyond “statements of concern.” Guellali called for a unified response to pressure Huthi authorities to guarantee safe and unhindered humanitarian access across Yemen and to end reprisals against aid workers.