{"id":29957,"date":"2026-03-26T07:39:53","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T05:39:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/?post_type=news&#038;p=29957"},"modified":"2026-03-26T07:39:53","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T05:39:53","slug":"guterres-calls-for-immediate-release-of-118-detained-un-staff-as-arrests-surge-worldwide","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/news\/guterres-calls-for-immediate-release-of-118-detained-un-staff-as-arrests-surge-worldwide\/","title":{"rendered":"Guterres calls for immediate release of 118 detained UN staff as arrests surge worldwide"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">Last year alone, 179 UN staff members were arrested or detained, more than triple the number recorded at the same time the previous year.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Marking the International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members, Guterres said \u201cno colleague is forgotten\u201d, urging all Member States to uphold international law and ensure safe, unimpeded humanitarian access. The UN continues to operate in some of the world\u2019s most dangerous environments, including Gaza, Sudan, Afghanistan, Haiti, Yemen, Ukraine and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The situation is particularly severe in Yemen, where 73 UN staff remain detained by the de facto Houthi authorities, including eight from the UN human rights office. Some have been held for as long as five years.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>\u201cEvery day, the injustice of their detention is compounded,\u201d UN human rights chief Volker T\u00fcrk said. \u201cTheir suffering, and that of their families, is intolerable.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>T\u00fcrk demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all detained personnel. \u201cUnder no circumstances can UN staff be detained, much less charged with crimes, for undertaking their vital work on behalf of the Yemeni people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock condemned the growing number of arrests, warning that detaining UN staff violates fundamental human rights and undermines emergency assistance to millions. \u201cAny detention not only violates international law and immunities, it delays lifesaving humanitarian assistance,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>In a video message, Baerbock added: \u201cUN staff should never be a target. They are giving their lives every day to support communities in dire need.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The International Day of Solidarity commemorates the abduction of Alec Collett, a Journalist working for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, who was kidnapped in Lebanon in 1985. His remains were recovered in 2009.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The day aims to mobilise global action to protect UN staff, peacekeepers and humanitarian workers, who continue to face increasing threats.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>\u201cToday and every day, let us stand with those who serve humanity,\u201d Guterres said. \u201cWe must ensure they are protected as they carry out their essential work.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&#8211;UN\/ChannelAfrica&#8211;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":29895,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-29957","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"United Nations (UN) Secretary\u2011General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres has called for the immediate release of 118 UN personnel currently detained worldwide, warning that attacks and arbitrary arrests targeting UN staff are rising at an alarming rate.\u00a0","published_date":"","news_description":"United Nations (UN) Secretary\u2011General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres has called for the immediate release of 118 UN personnel currently detained worldwide, warning that attacks and arbitrary arrests targeting UN staff are rising at an alarming rate.\u00a0","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/29957","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/29957\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29959,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/29957\/revisions\/29959"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29957"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=29957"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}