Sanaa, April 17. Saudi Arabia, which has been intervening in Yemen at the head of a military coalition in support of the Yemeni government since 2015, will release 104 prisoners on Monday, as part of an operation outside the exchange of detainees for three days which ended on Sunday under the supervision of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Yemen’s Houthi rebels deputy foreign minister Hussein al-Ezzi said on Twitter that 104 prisoners of war will be released today, arriving on several planes in Sanaa, the Yemeni capital that has been controlled by insurgents since the start. of the conflict in 2014.
He also said the releases are taking place outside of the three-day prisoner swap process that concluded yesterday between the Saudi-led military coalition and the Houthis, which was described as “successful”. by the parties for the release of 869 people.
In this context, Al Ezzi indicated that these initiatives reaffirm “the need to continue efforts to bring Sanaa and Riyadh closer together”, at a time when talks are also taking place between the two parties which could mean the end of the conflict in the Arab region. . country.
For his part, Farid al-Humaid, spokesman for the ICRC, assured EFE from Sanaa airport that two flights with a total of 96 people chartered by the organization will land today in the capital, while another with 8 detainees will arrive in the city of Aden, seat of the internationally recognized government.
The source said that it was one of the largest unilateral liberation operations since the beginning of the conflict, with the one that took place in 2019 and that thanks to the coordination of the ICRC, some 290 Yemenis were able to be sent home.
“There are prisoners who are not on the negotiation lists, and they also have the right to be released. We will support any initiative to free the prisoners,” Al Humaid said.
The prisoner swap completed yesterday represents the second largest agreed swap since the conflict in Yemen began, following another operation in 2020 in which more than 1,000 people were released. ECE
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