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UN pauses operations in Saada after detention of eight UN personnel
Summary
The UN secretary-general instructed agencies to suspend activities in Yemen’s Saada Governorate after Houthi de facto authorities detained eight UN staff, citing safety and security concerns and demanding guarantees for release and secure humanitarian access.
The United Nations has paused “all operations and programs inside [Saada] governorate” in Yemen after Houthi de facto authorities detained eight UN personnel, the UN spokesperson said at a press briefing.
The secretary-general ordered the temporary suspension to “balance the imperative to stay and deliver with the need to have the safety and security of the UN personnel and its partners guaranteed,” the spokesperson said, adding that the pause is intended to give the de facto authorities and the UN time to arrange the release of arbitrarily detained personnel and to secure conditions required to deliver humanitarian assistance.
The pause applies specifically to Saada Governorate; the spokesperson said the measure is “extraordinary and temporary” and that the UN remains committed to assisting people across Yemen. He said such guarantees are required to ensure relief operations are effective and sustainable.
During follow-up questions, the spokesperson confirmed the eight staff were detained in January and described them as “additional personnel” following earlier incidents. He said the UN would try to provide humanitarian figures on the population affected in the governorate.
The spokesperson framed the action as an operational decision driven by security considerations rather than a withdrawal of the UN’s overall commitment to Yemen, and said the organization will seek assurances that delivery can resume in line with humanitarian principles of impartiality, neutrality, independence and humanity.
The UN’s public statement and the spokesperson’s remarks did not specify a timetable for resuming operations, the exact agencies affected by the pause, or the identities of the detained personnel.
