Yemen's Houthis have raided offices belonging to the International Committee for the Red Cross in Sanaa for the first time, keeping dozens of employees including foreign workers under siege during questioning, a source told The National.
The source said armed men confiscated mobile phones and laptops, cutting off communications with staff at the office including the ICRC's head of mission Christine Cipolla. Hours later, the devices were returned and many of the workers released.
It was not immediately clear whether any had been forcibly taken from the offices to Houthi-run locations. The source said the head of IT was held on Sunday for 24 hours before being released.
It comes as the group intensifies raids, arrests and interrogations of foreign and Yemeni staff working with international organisations, which they accuse of collaborating with Israel.
The Iran-aligned rebels, part of the so-called axis of resistance against Israel and the US, frequently attacked ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and fired on Israeli territory during the two-year Gaza war, attacks they said were in solidarity with the Palestinians.
The Houthis have hinted at a pause in that campaign since the October ceasefire in Gaza, with military chief of staff Yusuf Al Madani telling Hamas fighters they would “reinstate the ban” on enemy shipping off Yemen's shores if the war resumes. A French-owned ultra-large cargo ship this week became the first to cross the Red Sea in two years.
The modus operandi of this weekend's raid in Sanaa is not new for the Houthis, who have on previous missions detained people and held them for questioning. One UN staff member died in Houthi custody in Saada in February, with the cause of death unknown.
The raid on the Red Cross is unprecedented, however. The organisation has previously helped with the release of Houthi detainees in Yemen. In January, a group of 153 were freed after being assessed by ICRC medical staff.
In August, Israel launched air strikes on Yemen that killed at least 11 members of the Houthi government in Sanaa, including its prime minister Ahmed Al Rahawi and military chief of staff Mohammed Al Ghamari.
There were claims of the torture and execution of dozens of humanitarian workers held in Houthi prisons, after the rebel group leader Abdul-Malik Al Houthi, in a televised speech in October, accused the World Food Programme and Unicef of complicity in “dangerous espionage cells”.
He said both organisations were using their humanitarian work as “cover” for working with the US and the Israelis, and that the group had “conclusive evidence” of this. The UN has repeatedly denied these claims.
The Houthis took over the Yemeni capital Sanaa in 2014, prompting intervention by a Saudi-led coalition the following year, at the request of the internationally recognised government.
UN staff in Yemen have been critical of the alliance for not doing enough to protect them, given their risk of being captured by the Houthis. The National has repeatedly reached out to the UN to respond to those accusations.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
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Richard Flanagan
Chatto & Windus
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Bah
Born: 1972
Husband: Emirati lawyer Salem Bin Sahoo, since 1992
Children: Soud, born 1993, lawyer; Obaid, born 1994, deceased; four other boys and one girl, three months old
Education: BA in Elementary Education, worked for five years in a Dubai school
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
AL%20BOOM
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MATCH INFO
Chelsea 3 (Abraham 11', 17', 74')
Luton Town 1 (Clark 30')
Man of the match Abraham (Chelsea)
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Company%20Profile
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Company profile
Name: GiftBag.ae
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2011
Number of employees: 4
Sector: E-commerce
Funding: Self-funded to date
