THE Houthi-led Yemeni government released five United Nations staff members and allowed 15 international ones to move freely within the UN compound after detaining them there in Sanaa over the weekend, a UN spokesperson said on Monday.

Stephane Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, also said that Houthi security forces had left the compound after the latest of such raids on international organisations.

Yemeni authorities have a long-running crackdown against the UN and others working in their country, including capital Sanaa, the coastal city of Hodeida and in the northern province Sadaa.

The Yemenis have repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that the detained UN staff and employees of other organisations and embassies were spies, which the UN has denied.

Dozens of people have been detained. A World Food Programme worker died in detention earlier this year in Sadaa.

Mr Dujarric also told reporters on Monday that secretary-general Antonio Guterres spoke with the foreign ministers and leaders of Iran, Yemen and Saudi Arabia earlier in the day regarding the detainment of staff.

He said that as the UN engages in the sensitive negotiations, it is important for member states who have influence in the region, like those three countries, to use their leverage to assist in the release of international and national staff.