UN Staff Member Dies in Houthi Detention

Yemen Monitor / Newsroom: The Yemeni Ministry of Human Rights has held the Houthi group responsible for the death of Muhammad Ibrahim Al-Shami, an employee of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), inside one of its detention centers, more than two years after his abduction and enforced disappearance, during which his family was denied visits or communication. In a statement, Human Rights Minister Meshdal Omar said that Al-Shami’s death was announced today, while the circumstances surrounding his death remain unknown, and his body has not yet been handed over to his family. He added that the case places the United Nations before its responsibilities regarding its abducted personnel and raises questions about the efforts undertaken to monitor their conditions and press for their release. The minister noted that their continued detention for more than two years—culminating in the death of one staff member without allowing his family to visit or ascertain his condition—warrants a review of how this issue is handled. The minister called for taking more decisive steps to release all abductees, uncover the circumstances of Al-Shami’s death, hand over his body to his family, and hold those responsible for his death accountable. The post UN Staff Member Dies in Houthi Detention appeared first on Yemen Monitor.