One day after the announcement of the killing of the Prime Minister of the coup government, Ahmed Ghaleb Al-Rahwi, along with 9 ministers and security officials, and injuries to others in an Israeli airstrike on Thursday, Yemeni media and human rights activists revealed today (Sunday) that the Houthis launched raids targeting offices of international organizations, relief agencies, and UN bodies, kidnapping several of their staff in Sana’a.

Yemeni human rights sources said Houthi militants stormed the offices of the World Food Program and UNICEF, both affiliated with the United Nations, in the capital Sana’a, detaining a number of employees. Approximately 7 World Food Program staff and 3 UNICEF employees were taken from their workplaces to unknown locations.

The sources indicated that the Houthis obstructed the work and activities of these organizations, raising concerns among Yemenis who are enduring harsh humanitarian conditions due to systematic looting of their savings by the Houthis, signaling a looming new humanitarian crisis.

The reasons behind the storming of the offices and the detention of staff remain unclear, and neither the Houthi group nor the UN organizations have issued any official comment on the matter.

Yemeni Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Muammar Al-Eryani, strongly condemned the brutal campaign launched by the Houthi group against UN employees and affiliated bodies, which recently targeted UN offices in Sana’a and several areas forcibly controlled by the Houthis.

Al-Eryani stated on his X account that information indicates the Houthis stormed the World Food Program office in Sana’a, kidnapped two of its employees, detained the rest inside, imposed house arrest on UN staff, kidnapped UNICEF security guards, and launched similar abduction campaigns against employees in Al-Hudaydah governorate, with the full toll still unknown. He added that these serious violations come amid the ongoing detention of dozens of UN and international organization staff, the UN envoy’s office, and foreign embassies, extending the Houthis’ policy of mistreatment of humanitarian and relief workers, in blatant defiance of international humanitarian law and all international norms and treaties.

He further warned repeatedly about the dangers of continuing international organizations’ work in Houthi-controlled areas and called for relocating their offices to the temporary capital Aden, where a safer and more stable environment exists to ensure the continuation of humanitarian services free from pressure and blackmail.

Al-Eryani urged the international community to assume its responsibilities regarding these criminal practices and to act immediately to ensure the safety of all UN staff. He also called on the European Union, the United Kingdom, and other countries to take practical steps to classify the Houthi group as a global terrorist organization and to cut off its funding sources, putting an end to its systematic violations against the Yemeni people and humanitarian workers.

Last year, the Houthis kidnapped several UN employees, the UN envoy’s office staff, and international and local organizations’ personnel, some of whom remain imprisoned today, accused of spying for the United States.

Meanwhile, eyewitnesses confirmed that the Houthis are in a state of alert and have deployed widespread security forces in Sana’a streets since the early hours of the Israeli airstrike that targeted a house in the Hadda district in the city center, noting that the situation in Sana’a is extremely tense.