"No Real Protection" Deaths in Houthi Detention Centers Raise Urgent Questions About Aid Workers in Yemen (Investigation)

It remains unclear why the Houthis targeted al-Hakimi, and the New Humanitarian has seen no evidence that anyone other than his captors was responsible for his death.

But interviews with current and former Save the Children staff, as well as private documents, reveal that the organization's operations in Yemen faced serious internal problems immediately before, during, and after his arrest.

Workplace conflicts and an under-resourced employee reporting system may have made the organization's country office more vulnerable to interference by a powerful armed group with a history of arbitrary arrests.

Investigations by Save the Children found that staff raised "various concerns" about the Yemen office for months before and after al-Hakimi's arrest, but the organization's "incident management processes" failed and "risk management processes were not followed," according to a three-page summary of the findings seen by The New Humanitarian.

“Overall, there are fundamental failures in leadership, process, and accountability that we must urgently address,” the summary said.

Since al-Hakimi's death, the Houthis have escalated their campaign against local aid workers and civil society. They arrested more than 50 people in June 2024, including 13 UN staff, and then eight more UN staff in January of this year.

Many detainees remain incommunicado. At least three have been released. A UN staff member died in detention in early February.

Detention and manipulation

Yemeni human rights groups have documented hundreds of arbitrary detentions by the Houthis since they took over Sanaa in late 2014. They have targeted perceived political opponents, journalists, human rights defenders, and religious minorities, and operate a network of official and unofficial detention centers where torture is widespread.

The Houthis have held some detainees for ransom or to force the internationally recognized government, which rules most of southern Yemen from its base in Aden and elsewhere, to exchange prisoners.

In 2021, the Houthis arrested approximately 20 former employees of the US embassy in Sanaa, which suspended operations in 2014. Some of them were released.

As needs grow, billions of dollars have flowed into Yemen through UN-coordinated aid appeals. A portion of this aid is regularly diverted into the Houthis' coffers. The internationally recognized government has also been accused of diverting aid, albeit on a smaller scale.

Journalists have uncovered instances in which UN agencies paid salaries to Houthi officials. The Houthis have also sold food aid on the black market and used it to force families to provide recruits for the fighting.

Despite the slowdown in fighting on the front lines, the Houthis' exploitation of aid has become "more comprehensive, and their targeting of humanitarian workers more extreme," according to research conducted by the Sana'a Center for Strategic Studies, a Yemen-focused think tank.

Sarah Voelstick, an emergency aid coordinator with Doctors Without Borders in Gaza who served as the World Food Programme's access coordinator in Yemen in 2019 and has also worked in Afghanistan and South Sudan, said the Houthis are restricting aid agencies' ability to travel around their territory, conduct independent needs assessments, and monitor their programs.

Aid agencies are also facing pressure to use Houthi ministries as implementing partners. In 2019, the World Food Programme's primary implementing partner for food aid was the Houthi Ministry of Education, which failed to disclose its distribution points and prevented the agency from monitoring nutrition programs, according to Voelstick told The New Humanitarian.

“We were never able to actually monitor food distribution, so it was like a black hole,” she said. “Every time we reached this red line that we would never accept in any other context, and we crossed it, and there was no resistance… it became a precedent.”

A WFP spokesperson confirmed that the agency is currently using the Houthi Ministry of Health as an implementing partner.

Several individuals who reportedly failed to comply with Houthi diversion tactics have been arrested. In 2023, authorities arrested Adnan al-Harazi, who ran a company that monitored aid programs for several UN agencies.

He was sentenced to death last June, the same month that saw mass arrests of aid workers and civil society. As of January 2025, al-Harazi was appealing his sentence before the Court of Appeal.

In 2022, this manager attempted to implement a policy limiting the office's hiring of people related to each other. The plan angered some employees and was eventually scrapped.

But the online attacks continued, with the director accused of promoting homosexuality in Yemen, seeking to replace Yemeni employees with foreigners, and diverting aid to the Houthis.

The Save the Children International regional office in Jordan documented the posts attacking the Western director, but was unable to identify the perpetrators. One former senior employee said, "It was clear [the director] was targeted. It was a bit of a bad environment."

A few months into 2023, Save the Children's regional leadership sent two staff members to monitor the unfolding problems in the Yemen office. "They returned with a horrific and largely devastating report on the Yemen office's operations," said one former senior staff member.

One staff member recalled that visiting colleagues described the Yemen office as "extremely dysfunctional." They said, "When Hisham's tragedy happened, many staff members told me this is exactly what this mission [from the regional office] had warned about."

Al-Hakimi and the country's office director appeared to be on good terms, but according to the former senior official, "It was a complete scandal, and in the end, everything exploded."

In July or August 2023, an anonymous social media post accused the country's program director of various forms of aid diversion, such as improperly giving a Save the Children vehicle to the Houthis, according to a former staff member. The New Humanitarian has not seen the alleged post, nor any evidence of the program director's involvement in any inappropriate activities.

This post sparked what appeared to be a rapid chain of events that culminated in al-Hakimi's arrest, but because the Houthis never explained why they arrested him, it is uncertain whether the events were related.

Shortly after the post was published, the country operations director, accompanied by a few Save the Children liaison officers, attended a meeting with the Supreme Authority for the Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the now-dissolved Houthi aid regulatory body.

Houthi officials wanted to know who was responsible for the post and asked the communications staff to leave the room to attend part of the meeting.

This raised suspicions among communications staff that the country's bureau chief may have blamed specific colleagues for the post. The former senior staff member said the country's bureau chief denied giving authorities any names.

The communications staff shared their suspicions with Al-Hakimi, who then filed a series of reports—via email and Datix, the organization's internal platform for reporting fraud and other incidents—and told colleagues in Jordan that he was concerned about being arrested.

According to a former senior member of the task force, Al-Hakimi claimed that the Yemen operations manager blamed the post on him and his team members. They said, "Hisham's report specifically stated that he felt the [manager's] actions put him in danger."

Within a few days, the country's office director submitted his own report, accusing his colleagues of orchestrating the cyberattacks against them. The former employee said it was clear the director was referring to al-Hakimi and his team.

Belinda Goldsmith, Save the Children's global media director, confirmed that al-Hakimi had told his regional colleagues he felt in danger before his arrest.

“They have been in constant contact with him to work out the best way forward,” Goldsmith told The New Humanist in late 2023, adding that “transition has been discussed as a possible option.”

But al-Hakimi refused to leave Sana'a. "If he left, he would look guilty [of fleeing the scene] and would never be able to return home," said one former senior official.

Riyadh al-Dubai, a Yemeni human rights activist based in the Netherlands, said he also received a call from al-Hakimi in late August 2023. “He said his work environment had become so toxic that it was difficult for him to continue,” he said. “He said he felt threatened, but he couldn’t leave because he couldn’t find a job like that… He said being a refugee wasn’t an option for him. He asked me to pray for him because he didn’t know what to do.”

The former senior employee said the country manager also refused to leave Yemen, recalling that the manager told them they wanted to stay out of the way of their team.

Save the Children's investigation into al-Hakimi's arrest and death, conducted in the first half of 2024, concluded that a "negative work culture had developed" in the Yemen office, where the organization's values ​​were not properly promoted, according to the three-page summary.

"This has left many employees feeling frustrated and marginalized," she added.

The organization also identified "breakdowns in our reporting process when it comes to Datix ," and pledged to "strengthen our whistleblowing processes and staff training, so they are better equipped to manage concerns."

The investigations concluded that senior regional and headquarters staff failed to comply with some of the organization's policies and procedures. According to the three-page summary, "leadership across the organization did not respond quickly enough to the deteriorating situation in Yemen."

Consequences

In emails and the Datix report he sent to colleagues in the days leading up to his arrest, al-Hakimi expressed clear fear for his safety. But in conversations with some colleagues, he put on a brave face.

“We spoke with Hisham about this in detail, and he was absolutely certain that even if he was arrested, [it would take] three days, he would be released, and that would be normal,” the former member of the organization said.

He was arrested on September 9, 2023, off-duty, in what communications staff described as a planned, multi-agency operation. A former member of the organization said, "I think this was at a much higher level than he anticipated."

The arrest was a unique blow to the Sana'a office. As director of security and safety, al-Hakimi was responsible for managing security threats. "If someone was arrested, he was the guy who would get everyone in and out, or go in for negotiations," said one former senior employee. "He had very close relationships."

Within a few days, the organization's Yemen director and several regional colleagues were able to make a phone call to the Houthi-run Supreme Council for the Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and International Cooperation to inquire about al-Hakimi's condition, where he was being held, and the reason for his detention. Officials provided vague answers, sparking confusion about whether the arrest was related to his work or his personal life.

He added, "The Yemen office team did not have any capacity to manage incidents."

Goldsmith did not respond to questions about the organization's ability to respond to al-Hakimi's arrest after its director in the country left.

Communications personnel were able to locate al-Hakimi and deliver a bag of clothes to him, "but they never saw him," the former senior official said.

The international organization's leadership was informed of Al-Hakimi's death on October 24, 2023, according to a private email seen by The New Humanitarian.

The organization demanded clarification from the Houthi authorities, who subsequently issued a statement saying that al-Hakimi was arrested for activities he had previously warned against, and that he had ignored those warnings. However, "the activities they spoke of were never clarified," according to the former senior official.

Organizations critical of the Houthis linked several arrests in late 2023 to an official named Mohammed al-Washli, deputy director of the Houthi security and intelligence apparatus. The Yemeni human rights organization Mayun reported that al-Washli oversaw al-Hakimi's arrest.

According to Khabar News Agency, Al-Washli also oversaw the arrest of several education experts a few weeks later. One of these experts, Sabri al-Hakimi, died in detention in March 2024. It is unclear whether he had any connection to Hisham.

Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam did not respond to questions about these arrests.

Years of escalating Houthi arrests

Save the Children's summary of the investigation did not provide any explanation for why al-Hakimi was arrested or how he died.

In early February 2025, Goldsmith told The New Humanitarian: “Despite our best efforts to understand what happened and why, the challenges in Yemen mean we will never know the full circumstances surrounding Hisham’s death.”

"The Houthis use the same rules with everyone," she told The New Humanitarian. "They ask people not to talk about their cases. They say they'll be fine, that they've been treated well, and that they'll be released once the investigation is complete."

"I believe many organizations have not taken more stringent measures because they, and many of the detainees' families, want to believe these promises and are afraid to do anything that might make the situation worse," she added.

"But there is a lot of evidence to the contrary - when people don't speak out publicly about their issues, there is a greater chance that the Houthis will treat them worse in detention, or that they may die in detention," she continued.

Following the mass arrests in June 2024 and January 2025, the response from UN agencies, international NGOs, and donors was also “relatively slow and muted,” according to the Sana’a Center.

Last September, the United Nations announced that it would reduce development work and prioritize "life-saving" activities to reduce the risk to workers in Houthi-controlled areas.

Aid workers surveyed by the Sana'a Center at the time said the plan "effectively maintains subsidies that help the Houthis" recruit soldiers and control state institutions.

Relatives of three current detainees, including two UN staff members, said they want their employers to take stricter action. The New Humanitarian is refraining from publishing some information that might identify the relatives out of concern for the detainees' safety.

A relative of a Yemeni UN employee described the Houthi raid on his home last June, saying, "About 15 armed officers stormed the house, while others surrounded it. They searched the pillows, documents, and family photos. Although they found nothing incriminating, they arrested the UN employee and seized the family car."

"They surrounded the entire area with cars and weapons, as if they were arresting a very important terrorist," the relative said, adding that the UN employee was not involved in any political activities.

"Why is he being arrested? Just because he works for the United Nations," he asked. The relative questioned why UN aid agencies continue their activities in Houthi-controlled areas while more than ten of their staff are being arbitrarily detained.

"What did they do? What restrictions did they impose? What did they negotiate? [The Houthis] took these people, and they can come tomorrow and take others. We feel very disappointed and let down," he said.

In another case, the WHO failed to act on safety concerns raised by a staff member shortly before his arrest, according to a relative.

In May 2024, a doctor working on vaccination campaigns for the World Health Organization warned his office's security team that he was under surveillance and that Houthi intelligence officials had visited the Ministry of Health to inquire about his work and salary, his relative told The New Humanitarian. "But they did nothing," he added, referring to the agency.

The doctor was arrested the following month and remains in detention. WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier said he could not comment on security issues or measures taken to ensure the safety of staff.

Like al-Hakimi, the doctor had been embroiled in workplace conflicts in the months prior to his arrest. During a team meeting in early 2024, he criticized WHO leaders for terminating dozens of Yemeni staff while the agency reportedly recruited and retained high-level international staff.

"The WHO office in the country marginalizes national staff and excludes them from many decision-making meetings and committees," the doctor said, according to a recording of the meeting seen by The New Humanitarian.

Lindmeier said funding constraints have had a severe impact on both national and international staff at the WHO office in Yemen, adding that 90% of current staff are local.

After the meeting, according to a text message seen by The New Humanitarian, the doctor told a friend, "I'm at war with the organization. I caused them trouble, and now people are coming after me."

Al-Siddiq, a former UN employee, said the doctor was also involved in "operational financial disputes" with the Houthi Ministry of Health over concerns about the diversion of funds he oversaw. Al-Siddiq said the doctor received repeated warnings from Houthi officials to stop obstructing programs.

"He knew that if this budget went to the Houthis, nothing would be done, and the vaccination campaign would fail. He's the kind of person who can't keep quiet when he sees something wrong... I think that's why [the Houthis] targeted him," he added.

Lindmeier said the doctor did not report these concerns to his supervisors.

Al-Siddiq added that UN leaders "are fully aware that the Houthis are corrupt, and fully aware that the money given to them will never reach those in need, but they continue to work with them," adding, "They prefer to give the Houthis what they want rather than confront or argue with them."

For this reason, Al-Siddiq added, "there was no real protection from the United Nations." Al-Siddiq said that some of the doctor's responsibilities were delegated after his arrest to a colleague who had previously held a senior Houthi position.

He added that this colleague, Mohammed (Al-Mutaa), had served as director of relations with international organizations within the Houthi Ministry of Health in 2016. His appointment, according to the Al Jazeera report, was part of a process that transformed the ministry into a "golden goose for the Houthis," giving the movement control over funds from international organizations, as well as the local pharmaceutical market.

Lindmeier said that Al-Mutaa was recruited through WHO's "standard selection process" in 2011, worked for the agency until 2015, and returned in 2017 as part of a team that included the now-detained doctor.

“When [the doctor] was arrested, Dr. Al-Mutaa continued to do the team’s work,” Lindmeier said.

The spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on why the WHO needed to hire someone who recently represented one of the parties to the conflict in Yemen.

Al-Mutaa did not respond to a request for comment sent via LinkedIn.

According to the Sana'a Center, the mass arrests have put increasing pressure on aid workers and civil society to "actively assist and be helpful to the Houthis." Dozens have fled Houthi-controlled areas.

Al-Basha, the founder of the Basha Report, said his contacts with the UN in Sana'a had never been more fearful. He summed up their descriptions of their working conditions: "If you're detained, we're sorry, but we'll have to replace you. Either you work or you quit."

conflicting necessities

In a February report on the recent mass arrests of aid workers, Sana'a Center researchers proposed three options for the aid community: remain in Sana'a and continue negotiating; relocate outside Houthi-controlled areas; or cease operations in Houthi territory until staff are released and aid restrictions are lifted.

Of the 14 humanitarian and civil society workers interviewed by the researchers, 10 supported the third option.

Julien Harneis, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, responded to a similar proposal during an event organized by Chatham House last year.

"I am a humanitarian, and we have positive commitments to saving lives in Yemen. Every hour, a child under the age of five dies, and our humanitarian assistance prevents the deaths of two or three children," he said.

He added that the proposal to halt aid in Houthi-controlled areas begs the question: "How many people do you want to kill? Is it 10,000 children? Or are we going to allow 20,000 children to die?"

Commenting on Harneis's remarks, Voelstick, the former World Food Programme coordinator in Yemen, said: "This evasion of responsibility is unacceptable. I would like to ask him, but do you know that the aid you are providing in the current circumstances - which you are unwilling to withdraw - is actually helping people?"

Multiple reports published over the past few years raise similar questions about the amount of aid reaching intended beneficiaries in Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen.

According to Farea Al-Muslimi, a researcher at Chatham House, humanitarian organizations are reluctant to stand up to Houthi interference because it could jeopardize their access to beneficiaries.

“Donors won’t give you money unless you have access to it, but donors aren’t inside the country to see how the money is being spent,” Al-Muslimi told The New Humanitarian. “So as long as aid organizations have access to the aid, they allow the Houthis to control the aid as they see fit.”

In response to questions from The New Humanitarian, Harneis said the only considerations he takes into account when making decisions are humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law.

"The vast majority of humanitarian aid is reaching those it targets," said a spokesperson for the UN's emergency aid coordination body, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Attempts to impose red lines against Houthi interference have succeeded in some recent instances. In 2020, the threat of an aid freeze forced the Supreme Authority for the Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to back down from its demand for a 2% tax on all humanitarian projects in the country.

The previous year, the World Food Programme partially suspended aid to secure permission to introduce a biometric registration system aimed at preventing tampering.

"People are being detained, and that's something you can handle. Tell me, did anyone handle it differently?" they added.

Source: The New Humanitarian Swiss website - Translated by: Yemen Youth Net