Yemen’s Houthi rebels raid a UN facility but all staff are reported safe

CAIRO (AP) – Iranian-backed Houthi rebels on Saturday raided a U.N. facility in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, a U.N. official said, but all staff were reported to be safe.

Jean Alam, a spokesman for the U.N. resident coordinator for Yemen, said Houthi security forces entered the U.N. compound in Sanaa. He told The Associated Press there were 15 U.N. international staff members in the facility at the time of the raid, and that “according to latest information all staff in the compound are safe and accounted for and have contacted their families.”

The rebels also raided U.N. offices in Sanaa on Aug. 31 and detained 19 employees, according to the U.N. They later released the deputy director of the UNICEF office in the country but still hold more than 50 people, including many associated with aid groups, civil society and the now-closed U.S. Embassy in Sanaa.

“The United Nations is taking all necessary measures and is in contact with the relevant authorities and counterparts to ensure the safety and security of all personnel and property,” Alam said, referring to Saturday’s raid.

Another U.N. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the raid, said the building is operated by the U.N. The employees belong to multiple U.N. agencies including the World Food Program, UNICEF and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the official said.

A spokesman for the Houthis didn’t answer phone calls seeking a comment.

The Houthis have alleged without evidence that the U.N. staffers detained in August were spies – something fiercely denied by the world body and others.

In a televised speech Thursday, the Houthis’ secretive leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, claimed that they detained one of “the most dangerous espionage cells” which he said was “affiliated with organizations working in the humanitarian field, notably the World Food Program and UNICEF.” He didn’t offer evidence.

“Accusations such as these are dangerous and unacceptable,” U.N. spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said of the Houthi remarks. “They seriously jeopardize the safety of U.N. personnel and humanitarian workers and undermine life-saving operations.”

Saturday’s raid was the latest in a long-running Houthi crackdown against the U.N. and other international organizations working in rebel-held areas in Yemen. The crackdown forced the U.N. to suspend its operations in the Houthi stronghold of Saada province in northern Yemen following the detention of eight staffers in January. The U.N. also relocated its top humanitarian coordinator in Yemen from Sanaa to the coastal city of Aden, which serves as seat for the internationally recognized government.

Yemen has plunged into civil war in 2014, when the Houthis seized Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, forcing the internationally recognized government into exile.

A coalition led by Saudi Arabia and including the United Arab Emirates intervened the following year in an attempt to restore the government. The war has been stalemated in recent years, and the rebels reached a deal with Saudi Arabia that stopped their attacks on the kingdom in return for ceasing the Saudi-led strikes on their territories.