Houthis Hold 37 UN Food Workers as Trump-Backed WFP Chief Takes Charge

Thirty-seven United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) employees are being held by Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen, the agency’s new executive director told News Media on Wednesday. Some of the workers have been detained for nearly two years.

Luke J. Lindberg spoke as WFP personnel confront escalating dangers in several of the world’s most volatile conflict zones. Hundreds of aid workers have been killed while risking their lives to help others, he said.

“Right now in Yemen, we have 37 colleagues who are currently detained,” Lindberg said.

“These people are there to provide basic humanitarian services. They are not there to influence the political outcome of a conflict. We need to protect them and secure the release of our detained colleagues.”

Lindberg clarified that all 37 detainees are Yemeni nationals employed locally by the WFP. Some have been separated from their families for “nearly two years,” he said.

“It’s a really complex political environment,” Lindberg said, adding that no Americans are currently among those detained.

“They are all locally employed Yemenis,” he said.

Only three days after taking office, Lindberg raised the issue with U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz, highlighting the urgency of winning the workers’ release.

“Ambassador Waltz is aware, and the State Department team has done a great job of taking this seriously. Getting these people released is a priority for them, just as it is for us.”

“It’s been almost two years,” Lindberg said. “Away from their families. It breaks my heart.”

The detentions are taking place amid Yemen’s devastating civil war between the internationally recognized government and the Iran-backed Houthis. The conflict has crippled the economy and left millions reliant on humanitarian assistance.

More than 18 million people are facing acute food insecurity, including over two million children under the age of five who suffer from acute malnutrition.

“Our team operates in the most impossible and challenging conditions you can imagine around the world,” Lindberg said.

“People like me are not out in the field, handing food to people or cooking meals so they receive the nourishment they need. The wonderful people who choose to do this work are the real heroes.”

Lindberg said the WFP must carefully weigh the need to reach vulnerable communities against its responsibility to protect employees from unacceptable danger.

“There are areas we will enter and areas we cannot. The goal is to end the conflict and ensure humanitarian resources can reach those communities.

“Until that happens, there are places where we will not operate so our staff can remain safe and continue doing their work.”

The dangers extend beyond Yemen, with Lindberg saying conflict drives roughly two-thirds of acute food insecurity worldwide, with an estimated 266 million people facing severe hunger.

“It means the most challenging levels of hunger we can imagine,” Lindberg said.

The crisis has intensified pressure on humanitarian organizations to deliver food in some of the world’s most dangerous and inaccessible regions.

“But the World Food Programme really has a great team operating in over 120 countries around the world, doing this hard work each and every day,” he explained.

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Among the most urgent crises, he said, are those in Sudan, South Sudan and Somalia, where conflict, displacement and climate-related disasters have pushed vulnerable communities toward famine.

Fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has displaced millions and triggered famine conditions in parts of the country, with Lindberg saying Sudan will be his first field destination as executive director, reflecting the urgency of the crisis.

“Right now, we are approaching famine levels in three countries, predominantly in the Africa region, in Sudan, South Sudan and Somalia,” he said.

“And so those are flash points for me that are incredibly important for us to focus on, find the resources that should be available to help us meet those needs specifically.”

Other humanitarian emergencies include Gaza, where fighting, damaged infrastructure, restricted access and funding shortages have complicated food deliveries, and Haiti, where gang violence has disrupted aid access.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, fighting involving armed groups has displaced millions, while the war in Ukraine has also disrupted agricultural production and global food supply chains.

But Lindberg said one of the most disturbing consequences of these conflicts is the rising death toll among humanitarian workers with hundreds killed worldwide in recent years.

“Unfortunately, in the past couple of years, we’ve lost over 700 humanitarians around the world in their active duty.

“To me, that’s the worst possible outcome. It’s really unacceptable. And so yes, many of our World Food Programme colleagues have unfortunately been caught up in those circumstances as well.

“It’s my commitment to call each one of those family members should that happen, but it’s primarily my goal to not let that happen anymore.”

Lindberg’s appointment comes as the WFP confronts major humanitarian emergencies and funding pressures, while also bringing the agency a direct connection to President Donald Trump.

A South Dakota native, Lindberg previously served as undersecretary of agriculture for trade and foreign agricultural affairs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, overseeing international agricultural assistance programs, including the McGovern-Dole Food for Education and Food for Progress programs.

Lindberg succeeds Cindy McCain, who stepped down this year, with Deputy Executive Director Carl Skau serving in the interim. Since 1992, six executive directors were American.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and Food and Agriculture Organization Director-General Qu Dongyu appointed Lindberg after consulting the WFP Executive Board.

Lindberg said Trump personally called to ask him to serve as the U.S. nominee for the position, a conversation he described as evidence of the president’s commitment to humanitarian efforts.

“When I was nominated to lead the World Food Program by the United States, President Trump personally took the time to call me and offer me this opportunity,” Lindberg said.

“And to me, that shows his heart for this work. He is somebody that believes in peace around the world. And for me to have the opportunity to speak with him about how the World Food Programme can.

“To play an important role alongside the U.S. in addressing these humanitarian needs was a special moment that I’ll never forget.”

That said, Lindberg is adamant that his new job at the World Food Programme comes with a clear mission: “show up no matter what.”

That means focusing on delivering food to those who need it, regardless of the politics involved.

“To safely and effectively deliver food, and to really stay out of the politics of it, our goal is to feed hungry people.”