UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has called for the immediate release of the 118 UN staff currently detained worldwide.

Mr Guterres, in a statement marking the International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members, said attacks against the UN increased, with 179 personnel arrested or detained in 2025 alone.

The figure marks a significant increase from the 52 UN staff in detention in March 2025.

In Yemen alone, 73 UN staff remain detained by the de facto Houthi authorities, including eight from the UN’s human rights office.

The UN chief said “no colleague is forgotten” and urged Member States to uphold international law to ensure safe and unimpeded humanitarian work.

“Today and every day, let’s stand with those who serve humanity, and ensure they are protected and supported as they carry out their essential work,” Mr Guterres said.

The UN has a presence on the ground in some of the world’s most dangerous and unstable locations, including Gaza, Afghanistan, Sudan, Yemen, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

President of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, said: “Any detention not only violates fundamental human rights, international law and immunities.

“It also undermines vital humanitarian efforts, delaying lifesaving assistance to millions of people.

“UN staff should never be a target. They are giving their lives, every day, to support communities in dire need and for the principles of the United Nations.”

In Yemen, UN staff continue to face arbitrary arrests, whilst “some have been deprived of their liberty for five years now,” the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, said.

“Every day, the injustice of their detention is compounded. Their suffering, and that of their families, is intolerable,” he added.

The UN staff are being held in areas of the country under the control of the de facto Houthi authorities.

The human rights chief called on the de facto authorities in Yemen to release immediately and unconditionally the 73 UN staff.

“Under no circumstances can UN personnel be detained, much less charged with crimes, for undertaking their vital work on behalf of the Yemeni people,” Mr Türk said.

Mr Türk paid tribute to the thousands of UN staff who work in the most difficult situations, in crises and conflicts, to serve communities in need of support.

The International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members marks the anniversary of the abduction of Alec Collett.

Mr Collett, a former journalist working for the UN Palestine refugee agency, UNRWA, was abducted by a gunman in 1985, and his body was found in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley in 2009.

The aim of the international day is to mobilise action, demand justice, and strengthen the resolve to protect UN staff and peacekeepers.

The day is also aimed at protecting workers in the non-governmental community and the press. 

(NAN)