US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday called on Yemen's Houthi rebels to release 12 current and former US and UN employees who were detained by the Iran-backed militants last year.
“One year ago, Houthi forces breached the compound used by the US embassy in Sanaa, Yemen, and began detaining our Yemeni colleagues,” Mr Blinken tweeted on Wednesday.
“I call on the Houthis to reunite these Yemeni citizens with their families.”
He said the continued detention of those employees “shows gross disregard for diplomatic norms and constitutes an affront to the entire international community”.
Mr Blinken reiterated the US commitment to advancing a durable resolution to the Yemen conflict and said the release of those detained would be a demonstration from the Houthis “of their commitment to peace for the people of Yemen and willingness to participate in a future government that respects the rule of law”.
Last year, Yemeni security employees of the US government were detained in Sanaa after the compound that once housed the American embassy was attacked by the Houthis.
Some of them were immediately released but at least 10 former US embassy staffers are still in custody.
The UN confirmed in December that the Houthis had arrested two of its employees in Sanaa in early November.
