Timid UN Response to Death of Aid Worker Held Captive by Houthis

The United Nations pronounced itself “grief-stricken and outraged” about the death on February 10 of a veteran aid worker taken hostage in Yemen, yet its statements barely criticized the Houthi rebels forces who held the victim in captivity. This timid response underscores the extent to which the United Nations has accommodated itself to persistent abuse by the Iran-backed Houthis, who also divert vast amounts of aid intended for those facing deprivations as a result of Yemen’s decade-long civil war.

The victim was a Yemeni national who had worked for the World Food Programme (WFP) since 2017, the agency said. WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain referred to the victim as Ahmed but provided no surname. Forty years old, he is survived by a wife and two children. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the “arbitrary detention” of dozens of aid workers and diplomats is “unacceptable” but did not say he would impose any consequences on the Houthis for their persistent abuses.

UN Suspends Aid Work in Key Houthi Province After Kidnapping of Workers

The United Nations said on February 10 that it would pause “all operations and programs in Sa’ada governorate” in response to the January 23 kidnapping of eight UN personnel, including the WFP worker who died this week. It described the move as an “extraordinary and temporary measure.” The day after the kidnapping, the United Nations suspended “all official movements into and within areas under the [Houthi] authorities’ control.” The United Nations said the pause would give it time to arrange the release of its arbitrarily detained personnel.

The Houthis’ Long History of Abductions

The Houthis kidnapped 11 UN employees last June, along with three employees of the U.S. National Democratic Institute and three employees of a local human rights group. One tally by a Yemeni observer put the total number of arrests of UN and aid workers at 72 between May and July last year. For 14 months, the Houthis held the 25-member crew of the Galaxy Leader, a cargo ship it hijacked in the Red Sea. It released them after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect last month.

UN Repeatedly Fails to Hold the Houthis Accountable

In 2019, the WFP briefly suspended aid operations in Yemen because of the extent of diversion. The previous year, after finding that aid was being stolen and sold at Yemeni markets, then WFP Executive Director David Beasley said, “At a time when children are dying in Yemen because they haven’t enough food to eat, that is an outrage. This criminal behavior must stop immediately.”

Yet according to a June 2024 report from the Counter-Extremism Project, the situation remained as bad as ever: “The regime oversees and controls every aspect of humanitarian work in their territory: determining beneficiary lists, providing permits for any movements of aid organizations’ personnel, and deciding which local entities are eligible to serve as contractors, local implementation partners, or third-party monitors for humanitarian projects.”

With Funding as Leverage, U.S. Can Demand the UN Hold the Houthis Accountable

The United Nations depends on Western donors to fund its humanitarian operations. As the top provider of humanitarian assistance for Yemen, the United States has given nearly $6 billion in aid since the war broke out in 2014. Last month, the United Nations released its annual Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan for Yemen, entailing a request for $2.47 billion of funding.

Further U.S. funding should be contingent on a dramatic overhaul of UN operations in Yemen. First, the United Nations should insist on an immediate and unconditional release of all aid workers as a precondition for its continuing work. If the death of a WFP employee this week resulted from neglect or abuse, responsible parties must be held accountable. More broadly, the United Nations must break the Houthi stranglehold on aid operations so that it reaches those in need rather than enriching the regime.

Bridget Toomey is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), where she focuses on Iranian proxies, specifically Iraqi militias and the Houthis. For more analysis from Bridget and FDD, please subscribe HERE. Follow FDD on X @FDD. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.