Yemen's Houthi Rebels Detain 11 UN Staffers Amidst Growing Tensions

Eleven Yemeni employees of United Nations agencies have been detained by Yemen's Houthi rebels, according to authorities. The detentions come as the rebels face financial pressure and airstrikes from a US-led coalition. Other aid group workers are also believed to have been taken. The Houthis, who have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition since seizing Yemen's capital nearly a decade ago, have been targeting shipping in the Red Sea corridor due to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. The group has also cracked down on dissent at home, sentencing 44 people to death recently. Regional officials initially confirmed at least nine UN detentions, including staff from the UN human rights agency, development programme, World Food Programme, and the office of its special envoy. By Friday night, UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric acknowledged that 11 UN staffers had been taken and expressed concern over the situation. Former employees of the US Embassy in Sanaa have also been detained by the Houthis. The Mayyun Organisation for Human Rights named other aid groups whose employees were detained across four provinces held by the Houthis. Many of the groups mentioned did not immediately acknowledge the detentions. Save the Children expressed concern for the safety and well-being of one of its staff members in Yemen. Activists, lawyers, and others have called on the Houthis to release those detained. Human Rights Watch said that Houthi authorities have not revealed the locations of those detained or allowed them to communicate with their employers or families. The Houthis did not discuss the detentions, but military spokesman Brig Gen Yahya Saree claimed attacks on ships that had not been reported or acknowledged by international authorities. The rebels also reported new US-led airstrikes hitting Hodeida and Sanaa. The detentions come as the Houthis face issues with currency shortages and economic instability in areas they control. The war in Yemen has resulted in more than 150,000 deaths and created a severe humanitarian crisis. The Houthis have faced increasing casualties and damage from US-led airstrikes, while also employing child soldiers and laying indiscriminate mines. This is not the first time the Houthis have detained UN staffers, with four others still held by the group. The UN's human rights agency has called the situation "profoundly alarming" and a disregard for the rule of law.