Sanaa (South24)

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The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Tuesday strongly condemned the Houthis’ storming of its office in Sanaa and forcibly seizing its documents and property, and renewed its call for the immediate and unconditional release of all UN staff detained by the Iran-backed militia for more than two months.

In a statement, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, expressed his deep condemnation of the Houthis’ storming of the OHCHR office last week, describing it as a flagrant violation of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities enjoyed by the UN.

Türk stressed that the Houthis’ action was also “a serious attack on the ability of the UN to perform its mandate, including with respect to the promotion and protection of human rights” in Yemen. 

“[Houthi] forces must leave the premises and return all assets and belongings immediately,” he stated.

The statement explained that the Houthis sent a delegation to the High Commissioner's office in Sanaa on August 3, and forced the local staff to hand over belongings, including documents, furniture and vehicles, in addition to the keys to the office. “They are still in control of the premises,” the official said.

Türk said that the commission had temporarily suspended its operations in Sanaa and other areas under Houthi control following the large-scale arrest campaign carried out by the group in June, as part of which they arrested dozens of UN employees and those belonging to international and local organizations.

He also noted that six of the commission's employees are still being held by the Houthis, in addition to two others who were arrested in 2021 and 2023. They are being held in solitary confinement without any contact with the outside world, he said.

Türk renewed his call to the Houthi group to immediately and unconditionally release all detainees, noting that previous appeals had fallen on deaf ears. He also called on the Houthi authorities to respect the independence of the UN and ensure that its employees are not exposed to any threats or obstacles that hinder their work. He stressed that the Houthis must ensure full respect for the human rights of the detainees and allow them to contact their families and lawyers.

He denied the "false" accusations of espionage levelled by the group against the detainees, including accusing one of the commission's employees of spying after the latter was forced to make confessions under pressure in videos published online.

Türk stressed that “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”.

On July 29, an informed source told South24 Center today that the Houthi militia officially informed the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights of the closure of its office in Sanaa.

The Houthis reportedly gave the commission's employees three days to leave Sanaa. The group had previously detained eight commission employees, according to the source, and has not yet released them.

On July 22, the Houthis sent an official letter to international organizations operating in Yemen, requesting that they submit lists of their organizational structure in order to impose local employees loyal to the group, according to an informed source who spoke to ‘South24 Center’. 

Related: Houthis preparing to install loyalists in international organizations

 

For its part, the Internationally Recognized Government has called on international organizations and non-governmental organizations to move their headquarters from Sanaa to the capital, Aden, to protect them from the Houthis.