Yemen Monitor/Washington/Exclusive:
A U.S. official stated on Friday that they had held “productive talks” with the UN envoy to Yemen regarding the release of international organization employees detained by the Houthi group in Yemen.
Acting Assistant Secretary of State, John Bass, said, “I had a productive conversation yesterday with UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg.”
Bass added, “We emphasized the urgent need to secure the release of UN and embassy staff held by the Houthis, and we reiterated our pressure on the Houthi group to cease attacks and prioritize peace in Yemen.”
Last week, UN agencies and international organizations issued a statement expressing “deep concern” over the referral of their arbitrarily detained staff to the public prosecution by the Houthi group, and called for their immediate release.
Since June, the Houthis have detained 13 UN staff members, including six working for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, in addition to over 50 NGO staff and one embassy staff member, according to the UN.
The Houthis have asserted that they arrested members of an “US-Israeli espionage network” operating under the guise of humanitarian organizations, a claim the UN has categorically denied.
