Houthis claim 11 UN staffers arrested in Yemen this week were spying for Israel

UN staff arrested by Yemen’s Huthi rebels earlier this week are suspected of spying for Israel and the United States, a Houthi official tells AFP on condition of anonymity.

At least 11 United Nations workers were detained on Sunday after an Israeli airstrike killed the Houthis’ prime minister and about half of his cabinet last week.

“Those who were arrested from among the United Nations employees are accused of spying for the American and Israeli aggression,” the official from the Iran-backed group says.

“Whoever has the accusations against them confirmed will be referred to trial.”

The detainees include workers from the World Food Programme and UNICEF, which provides aid and support for children.

Dozens of other people were arrested on Saturday “on suspicion of collaborating with Israel,” a Yemeni security source told AFP at the time.

The arrests came after Houthi prime minister Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser al-Rahawi, nine ministers and two cabinet officials were killed in the Israeli airstrike last Thursday.

The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the Hamas terror group’s October 7 massacre and hostage-taking in southern Israel.

Neither the UN nor the EU recognizes the group as the legitimate government in Yemen, and the UN designates the Houthis as a terrorist organization. The Western-recognized Republic of Yemen, which is battling the rebels, is the country’s official representative at the UN.