More than 300 prisoners of war in Yemen were released on Friday on the first day of a major exchange between enemy camps, announced the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in full negotiations on a truce in the country.
Yemen has been the scene of a conflict since 2014 between the government, supported by Saudi Arabia, and Houthi rebels, supported by Iran, who have seized large swathes of the country, including the capital Sanaa.
At the end of March, the government and the rebels had reached an agreement in Switzerland to exchange nearly 900 prisoners, including Saudis, against the backdrop of an unexpected warming of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Sixty-nine people flew from Sana’a to Aden, the government’s interim capital in the south of the country, on Friday, and 249 more flew in the reverse direction on the first day of an operation due to end on Sunday, the ICRC said. in a press release.
The exchange will continue early Saturday with at least two flights scheduled between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, according to this organization. A total of 16 Saudi prisoners, as well as three Sudanese soldiers, are expected in Riyadh on Saturday.
In Sanaa, dozens of prisoners descended from a plane, waving their fists in the air in victory.
Among the many people gathered, Yahia Abou Korra said he had been waiting for his son’s return “for five years”. And with the end of Ramadan celebrations approaching next week, he is looking forward to the “double celebration”.
In Aden, cries of joy rang out when the former defense minister, Mahmoud al-Subaihi, and the former president’s brother, General Nasser Mansour Hadi, stepped out of a plane. The latter then went to Riyadh, where his brother lives.
The last operation of this magnitude dates back to October 2020, when more than 1,000 prisoners were released.
The UN envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, welcomed the start of the exchange while recalling that “thousands of other families are still waiting to be reunited”.
The war in Yemen has caused one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced, in a context of epidemics, lack of drinking water and acute hunger. More than three quarters of the population depend on international aid, which nevertheless continues to decline.
“Hundreds of families torn apart by conflict will be reunited for Ramadan, bringing a beacon of hope amid great suffering,” said Fabrizio Carboni, ICRC director in the Middle East.
Quoted in the press release, he expressed the hope that “these releases give impetus for a broader political solution”.
The exchange of prisoners was also welcomed by the American administration. “We encourage all parties to consolidate these positive steps and achieve (…) a diplomatic solution,” National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement.
On Thursday, a Saudi delegation left Sanaa with a “preliminary agreement” for a truce and the promise of “new talks”, according to a rebel official.
Discussions in Sanaa were “positive” with “progress on some issues”, Houthi chief negotiator Mohammed Abdelsalam said on Twitter.
According to Yemeni government sources, the talks are about a six-month truce paving the way for a three-month period of talks on a transition that will last two years, during which the final solution will be negotiated between all the parts.
The truce must make it possible to meet the two main demands of the Houthis: the payment by the government of the salaries of civil servants in the rebel areas and the reopening of Sanaa airport, controlled by the Saudi aviation.
Last year, the parties observed a six-month truce. Although it was not officially renewed after its expiry in early October, the situation remained relatively calm on the ground.
“Only the unconditional release of all civilian and non-civilian prisoners by the parties will show a serious commitment to peace,” said Nadwa Dawsari of the Middle East Institute think tank.
The March agreement was concluded after a warming of relations between the two heavyweights of the Gulf, Saudi Arabia and Iran, which oppose on various issues, and sometimes even by interposed camps as in Yemen.
14/04/2023 22:06:17 — Sanaa (AFP) © 2023 AFP
