UN condemns Houthi seizure of office in Yemen’s Sanaa

The United Nations has condemned the seizure by the Houthis of its Human Rights Office in the Yemeni capital Sanaa.

Storming the office earlier this month, the Houthis seized documents, furniture and vehicles, a senior UN official reported on Tuesday. The event was the latest crackdown by the Iran-aligned group on the UN, aid agencies and foreign embassies, amid its campaign over Israel’s war in Gaza, which includes the targeting of ships in the Red Sea.

The seizure of the office took place on August 3. Local UN employees were forced to hand over their belongings and documents, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said in a statement.

“Ansar Allah forces must leave the premises and return all assets and belongings immediately,” Turk demanded, using the official name of the Houthis.

The UN’s Human Rights Office said it has suspended operations in areas under Houthi control, which includes Sanaa and most of the north of Yemen, following a crackdown by the group in June on foreign organisations.

However, it still operates in the parts of Yemen controlled by the internationally recognised government, which is backed by a Saudi-led coalition, with which the Houthis have been fighting for control of Yemen since 2014.

The Houthis detained more than 60 people working with the UN and other NGOs in June, maintaining that they had arrested members of an “American-Israeli spy network”.

The group put out videos of 10 Yemenis, including one worker from the UN Human Rights Office, who purportedly confessed to being recruited by the US Embassy.

“All such claims are baseless,” Turk said. “At no time has my office engaged in any activities other than those in the service of the people of Yemen, in accordance with my mandate.”

The war in Yemen has since killed more than 150,000 people and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters, killing tens of thousands more.