UN human rights chief Volker Türk demands an urgent, independent and thorough investigation into Mohammad el-Shami’s death in Yemen, with full transparency from the Houthi authorities.
The United Nations confirmed on 31 October 2026, that Mohammad el-Shami, an employee of its human rights office in Yemen, had died in Houthi custody. UN human rights chief Volker Türk demanded an urgent, independent and thorough investigation and full transparency from the authorities holding him.
El-Shami had been detained since 6 June 2024, in detention the UN describes as arbitrary. Türk said his family learned of his death only recently, more than a month after it occurred. The cause, circumstances and exact date of his death remain unknown; his family has received no explanation.
Türk called on the Houthis to disclose all relevant medical and detention records, preserve evidence and allow independent scrutiny of any stated cause of death. He said el-Shami’s family deserved the truth and demanded accountability for wrongdoing.
Secretary-General António Guterres called for an immediate, impartial, transparent and thorough investigation. His statement said the Houthis had provided neither information about el-Shami’s well-being nor proof that he was alive, despite repeated UN requests throughout his detention. The UN is urgently seeking answers from the Houthi authorities.
The Jerusalem Post said in its October 31 report that the Houthis had not immediately commented. The armed movement seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and holds much of the country’s north and northwest, while government-aligned forces control much of the south and east.
Al Jazeera said the raids in June 2024 also targeted workers from nongovernmental organizations. The Houthis accused detainees of belonging to a spy network working for the United States and Israel; the UN describes the detentions as arbitrary.
The Houthi-run Health Ministry says four children were among those killed in Sanaa, while health authorities say an airstrike hit homes in Hodeida province.
Guterres identified el-Shami’s death as the second death of a UN employee in Houthi detention, following that of a World Food Programme employee in February 2025. That month, the UN paused operations in parts of Houthi-held Yemen because of concerns for employee safety. On 6 October 2026, the UN announced the release of another World Food Programme employee whom it described as arbitrarily detained.
| Category | Number |
|---|---|
| Current UN personnel | 70 |
| Former UN staff members | 5 |
Humanitarian and civil society personnel also remain detained. Türk expressed particular concern for 7 other colleagues from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, or OHCHR. UN envoy Hans Grundberg told the Security Council on 9 October that many detainees had serious health problems, making their release more urgent.
Türk said the detentions were gravely undermining the UN’s ability to support people in Yemen during a humanitarian and human rights crisis. Guterres said the authorities holding detainees bear responsibility for their safety, medical care and physical and psychological well-being. Both officials demand the detainees’ immediate and unconditional release.
1 min
The UN humanitarian office said on 2 November that it had provided food, hygiene supplies and emergency cash to around 254,000 displaced people, while nearly 300,000 had been forced from their homes across Yemen since the beginning of August. The UN has sent mobile teams and midwives to displacement sites and calls for safe, sustained aid access to 800,000 people it says are trapped in Taiz. An earlier assessment counted 6,100 pregnant women among the recently displaced, 600 of whom were due to give birth within two weeks. The International Organization for Migration says more than 319,000 people have been displaced across western Yemen, including around 134,000 in Taiz governorate. The UN Population Fund said on 3 November that 5 of Taiz’s 27 designated emergency maternal and newborn hospitals were partially functioning. At the city’s main maternal hospital, working incubators fell from 40 to 10 for lack of fuel.
3 min
