UN demands investigation after staffer’s death in Houthi custody in Yemen联合国要求对一名工作人员在也门胡塞武装拘留期间死亡事件展开调查
Mohammad el-Shami had been held since June 2024, when he and many other UN and NGO workers were accused of being spies.
![UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has demanded an investigation into the death of one of his employees, Mohammad el-Shami, in Houthi detention [File: Hassan Ammar/AP]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/ap_6a9e7acf478de-1788771023.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
Mohammad el-Shami had been held since June 2024, when he and many other UN and NGO workers were accused of being spies.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has demanded an investigation into the death of one of his employees, Mohammad el-Shami, in Houthi detention [File: Hassan Ammar/AP]
The United Nations has demanded an investigation into the death of an employee in Houthi detention in Yemen.
Mohammad el-Shami, a staff member of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Yemen, died more than a month ago, but his family was only recently informed, the UN said in a statement on Saturday.
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The Houthis did not say how he died, but his family “deserve to know the truth”, said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk.
The human rights chief also demanded “full transparency” from the Houthi authorities and an “urgent, independent and thorough investigation” into el-Shami’s death.
El-Shami had been arbitrarily held in Houthi custody since June 2024, when he and more than 60 people working with the UN and other NGOs were detained and accused of being part of an “American-Israeli spy network”.
“I am also gravely concerned” for the seven other OHCHR personnel who were detained alongside el-Shami and are still being held, Turk said. “I appeal again for their immediate and unconditional release.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a separate statement on Saturday that he was “appalled” by el-Shami’s death and echoed Turk’s calls for an investigation.
The UN is “urgently seeking answers” from the group about the circumstances of his death, Guterres added.
El-Shami is the second UN staff member to die in Houthi detention, following the death of a World Food Programme staffer in February 2025.
A total of 72 UN staffers and NGO workers, including el-Shami, have been detained by the Houthis.
The UN paused operations in parts of Houthi-held Yemen in February 2025 over concerns for the safety of its employees.
The rebel group has previously paraded some detainees on television channels, presenting them as collaborators with Western intelligence agencies and Israel.
On October 6, the UN announced that a World Food Programme employee had been released after being “arbitrarily detained” by the Iran-backed group.
穆罕默德·沙米自 2024 年 6 月以来一直被关押，当时他和许多其他联合国及非政府组织工作人员被指控为间谍。
联合国人权事务高级专员沃尔克·图尔克要求对他的一名雇员穆罕默德·沙米在胡塞武装拘留期间死亡一事展开调查。[图片：哈桑·阿马尔/美联社]
联合国要求对也门胡塞武装拘留所内一名雇员的死亡事件展开调查。
联合国人权事务高级专员办事处（人权高专办）驻也门工作人员穆罕默德·沙米在一个多月前去世，但他的家人最近才得知这一消息，联合国周六在一份声明中表示。
也门胡塞武装在最新一次袭击中拘留了20名联合国工作人员（共3条记录，此为第1条）
也门胡塞武装称，被捕的联合国工作人员将因与以色列的关系而受审（名单2/3）。
胡塞武装在也门再次拘留10名联合国工作人员，使被拘留人数达到69人（名单共3份）。
胡塞武装没有说明他是如何死的，但联合国人权事务高级专员沃尔克·图尔克表示，他的家人“有权知道真相”。
人权事务负责人还要求胡塞武装当局做到“完全透明”，并对沙米之死进行“紧急、独立和彻底的调查”。
自 2024 年 6 月以来，沙米一直被胡塞武装任意拘留。当时，他和 60 多名在联合国和其他非政府组织工作的人员被拘留，并被指控是“美以间谍网络”的一部分。
图尔克表示：“我也非常关切”与沙米一同被拘留且目前仍被关押的其他七名人权高专办工作人员的处境。“我再次呼吁立即无条件释放他们。”
联合国秘书长安东尼奥·古特雷斯周六在一份单独的声明中表示，他对沙米之死感到“震惊”，并响应了图尔克的呼吁，要求对此事展开调查。
古特雷斯补充说，联合国正在“紧急向该组织寻求答案”，以了解他的死因。
埃尔-沙米是继2025年2月世界粮食计划署一名工作人员死亡后，第二位在胡塞武装拘留期间死亡的联合国工作人员。
包括沙米在内的共72名联合国工作人员和非政府组织工作人员被胡塞武装拘留。
2025年2月，由于担心工作人员的安全，联合国暂停了在胡塞武装控制的也门部分地区的行动。
该反叛组织此前曾在电视台上公开展示一些被拘留者，称他们是西方情报机构和以色列的合作者。
10月6日，联合国宣布，一名世界粮食计划署工作人员在被伊朗支持的组织“任意拘留”后获释。