The United Nations has condemned the death of an international human rights staff member held in Houthi detention in Yemen. Mohammed Ibrahim al-Shami worked for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
According to UN statements, local authorities had arbitrarily detained him since June 6, 2024. United Nations Secretary General António Guterres issued a statement on Saturday regarding the death.
Guterres published the condemnation on the United States social media platform X. Al-Shami is the second UN employee to die while in Houthi custody during the ongoing regional conflict.
The previous fatality involved Ahmed Ba’alawi, a national employee of the World Food Program. Ba’alawi had been arbitrarily detained by local authorities in northern Yemen beginning January 23, 2025, and died on February 11 of that year.
Guterres expressed deep concern for other individuals currently imprisoned by the group. He stated that he remains gravely concerned for the safety and well-being of the UN personnel, former UN staff and personnel from humanitarian and civil society organizations who remain detained.
Yemen has suffered through continuous conflict since 2014. In that year, Houthi forces seized control of the capital city, Sanaa.
The takeover prompted a Saudi-led military intervention in March 2015. That intervention aimed to support the internationally recognized government of Yemen.
The decades-long war has generated severe conditions across the country. The conflict has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, leaving millions of people dependent on humanitarian assistance.
