The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Tuesday strongly condemned the storming of his Office’s representation in Sana’a by the Ansar Allah de facto authorities and renewed his call for the immediate and unconditional release of all UN staff detained in Yemen.
“Entering a UN office without permission and seizing documents and property by force are wholly inconsistent with the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations. This is also a serious attack on the ability of the UN to perform its mandate, including with respect to the promotion and protection of human rights, which our Office is there to defend,” UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told the biweekly UN press briefing in Geneva.
On 3 August 2024, Ansar Allah de facto authorities sent a “delegation” to the premises of the UN Human Rights Office in Sana’a that forced national staff to hand over belongings, including documents, furniture and vehicles, in addition to the office’s keys. Shamdasani said that they were still in control of the premises.
On 6 and 7 June, the de facto authorities detained 13 UN staff, including six employees of the UN Human Rights Office, in addition to over 50 NGO workers and an embassy staff member. Two other UN Human Rights staff had already been detained since November 2021 and August 2023 respectively, in addition to two other UN staff detained previously. They are all being held incommunicado.
Shamdasani said that multiple calls for the release of the detained staff – from the High Commissioner and other high-level officials – have not been heeded.
“We regret that all our pleas have fallen on deaf ears. We appeal again, with a heavy heart, for their immediate and unconditional release,” Shamdasani said.
“We are doing all we can to make sure they are united with their loved ones as soon as possible. Until then, the de facto authorities must ensure they are treated with full respect for their human rights, and that they are able to contact their families and legal representatives,” Shamdasani told reporters.
“It is crucial that the de facto authorities respect the United Nations and its independence, release all detained UN staff immediately, and create conditions in which our Office and other UN agencies can continue their critical work for people of Yemen without threats or hinderance.”
ENDS
For more information and media requests, please contact:
In Geneva:
Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org
Thameen Al-Kheetan - + 41 76 223 77 62 / thameen.alkheetan@un.org
Tag and share - Twitter: @UNHumanRights and Facebook: unitednationshumanrights
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani on storming of UN Human Rights office in Sana’a, renewed calls for release of detained UN staff
TRT: 1’35
SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 13 August 2024 – GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior shot: Palais des Nations
- Cutaway: Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Entering a UN office without permission and seizing documents and property by force are wholly inconsistent with the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations. This is also a serious attack on the ability of the UN to perform its mandate, including with respect to the promotion and protection of human rights, which our Office is there to defend.”
- Cutaway: Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “We appeal again, with a heavy heart, for their immediate and unconditional release.
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): We are doing all we can to make sure they are united with their loved ones as soon as possible. Until then, the de facto authorities must ensure that they are treated with full respect for their human rights, and that they are able to contact their families and legal representatives.”
- Cutaway: Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “It is crucial that the de facto authorities respect the United Nations and its independence, release all detained UN staff immediately, and create conditions in which our Office and other UN agencies can continue their critical work for people of Yemen without threats or hinderance.”
- Cutaways: Briefing room
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Friday called for an end to continuing expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, where “unchecked” settler violence has surged since the war in Gaza began more than two years ago.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
The crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to worsen amid ongoing fighting that has driven tens of thousands of people from their homes and created acute hunger, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
Gaza: One million receive food parcels as humanitarians race to ‘push back hunger’
Food is slowly returning to the shelves in Gaza amid “apocalyptic scenes” but supplies are still desperately inadequate, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday, as they issued fresh calls for wider access and continued financial support.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango today told the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva of more details that are emerging on the atrocities committed in El Fasher, in Sudan during and after its takeover by the Rapid Support Forces.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO
Sudan: UN Raises Alarm Over Mass Atrocities in El Fasher as Survivors Report Executions, Killings and Rapes
More details continue to emerge about atrocities committed during and after the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan on 23 October. Since the powerful paramilitary group made a major incursion into the city last week, the UN Human Rights Office has received “horrendous accounts of summary executions, mass killings, rapes, attacks against humanitarian workers, looting, abductions and forced displacement,” said Seif Magango, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
Ukraine: Russian attacks on energy terrorize population as winter starts; could trigger major ‘crisis within crisis’
The UN’s top aid official in Ukraine expressed concern on Friday about “continuous attacks” on energy production sites and distribution facilities.
1
1
1
Edited News | HRC
Navi Pillay Retires After Decades Defending Human Rights and Pursuing Justice
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The telecommunications shutdowns in Afghanistan in September had serious and far-reaching impacts on people’s lives, according to a briefing paper published today by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Jeremy Laurence at the UN Geneva press briefing made the following comment on the ASEAN declaration on the right to a healthy environment.
1
1
1
Edited News | IFRC , OCHA , WMO
‘Catastrophic’ Hurricane Melissa hours from landfall in Jamaica as humanitarians rush to save lives
Millions in Jamaica and across the Caribbean are bracing for massive impact from Hurricane Melissa on Tuesday as the UN and partners are warning of a “severe” and “immediate” humanitarian threat.