UN suspends movement in Houthi-held areas after staff detained

The Iranian-backed Houthis have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen for almost a decade. The conflict, which erupted after the Houthis forced out the then Yemeni government, has largely been at a standstill for the past two years.

But the Houthis have drawn renewed international attention with their targeting of ships in the Red Sea and their firing of rockets towards Israel in the past fifteen months, which they say is in support of Hamas and the Palestinians.

Their actions have triggered reprisal strikes on Houthi positions in Yemen from the US, Israel and the UK.

Since the ceasefire in Gaza began, the Houthis have said they will decrease their attacks on shipping and stop firing at Israel if it continues with the truce.

One of President Trump’s first acts on taking office has been, however, to order the Houthis to be put back on the US list of foreign terrorist organisations.

Despite all this, the group remains in control of large areas of Yemen.

The country was the poorest in the Middle East before the war began in 2015. Hundreds of thousands of people have since died in the fighting or from disease and hunger exacerbated by the conflict.

UN agencies provide a vital lifeline for millions of Yemenis with their food and medical aid.

But they have regularly had problems reaching people in more remote areas outside the major towns and cities, with Houthi officials regularly reported to have obstructed the delivery of humanitarian assistance in the regions they control.