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Another United Nations staff member has been detained in Yemen, bringing the number of the world body’s employees apprehended in recent days to six, a UN spokesperson said on Monday.
The latest detention came after Houthi security forces entered several United Nations offices in Sanaa, Yemen, on Sunday, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary general.
He added that the Houthis confiscated IT and communication equipment and assets.
At least 59 UN personnel are being held by Houthis, according to Dujarric, who condemned the continued detentions. Some have been held for years, the UN said.
There are hundreds of UN personnel remaining in parts of Houthi-controlled Yemen, including a small number of international staff, said Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the UN secretary general.
“Our immediate priority is the safety and well-being of all UN personnel, including securing the release of colleagues who have been arbitrarily detained and those of our local partners who have also been affected, and prevent further detentions,” Haq said.
The Iran-aligned Houthis have controlled most of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, since seizing power in 2014 and early 2015.
According to the UN, Houthis have taken steps that have made it “increasingly difficult” for the agency to provide assistance to those in need in Yemen.
Hajj said last week that the Houthis’ actions are forcing the UN to reassess how it works in areas controlled by the group.

RAMALLAH: Jailed Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti’s son urged US President Donald Trump to “seize the opportunity” created by the Gaza truce to secure his father’s release and revive the two-state solution to the Middle East conflict.

Sometimes dubbed the “Mandela of Palestine” by his supporters, Marwan Barghouti, 66, was one of the leaders of the second intifada, the Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s.

In June 2004, an Israeli court sentenced him to five life sentences after finding him guilty of involvement in four anti-Israeli attacks.

But the heavy sentences have not diminished his popularity among Palestinians.

“He’s capable and has the track record to unify the Palestinian people,” Arab Barghouti said in an interview on Sunday in English in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Ramallah.

“Someone like him represents a great opportunity for the international community to prove that they are serious about supporting the two-state solution.”

Arab Barghouti’s comments come after several countries — including France, Britain and Canada — formally recognized a Palestinian state last month.

He is the second member of the family to appeal to the US president to secure his father’s release. Earlier this month, Marwan Barghouti’s wife Fadwa also urged Trump to intervene.

Trump said in an interview with US magazine Time on October 15 that he would be “making a decision” on the matter, without specifying a timeline.

“I really hope he can do that, pressure the Israelis into releasing my father, because he is a partner for peace,” Arab Barghouti said, adding that his family “really welcome” Trump’s comment.

Though the two have not been allowed to speak in three years, Arab Barghouti said his father represents Palestinian unity and the best chance for a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians.

A longtime member of Abbas’ Fatah party, Marwan Barghouti has consistently been re-elected to the party’s central committee, including twice while in jail.

With his likeness painted on many walls in the occupied West Bank and, until recently, in Gaza, Marwan Barghouti is considered one of the few figures who could be accepted as a leader by all Palestinian political factions, including Hamas.