Abdullah Abu Dhaif (Aden)
The Yemeni government confirmed the agreement to hold a new round of negotiations on the exchange of prisoners and abductees with the Houthi group after Eid al-Adha, according to the principle of “all for all.” A Yemeni government official confirmed in exclusive statements to Al-Ittihad that there was a decision by the Yemeni leadership to end the file of the abductees. and prisoners according to the principle of “all for all”.
Members of the negotiating team regarding the implementation of the prisoner exchange agreement between the Yemeni government and the Houthis confirmed the agreement to hold a new round of talks after Eid al-Adha, following the end of the talks in the Jordanian capital, Amman, the day before.
The official spokesman for the prisoner exchange committee in the Yemeni government, Majid Fadayel, confirmed in exclusive statements to Al-Ittihad that the round of consultations that took place in Amman had ended without reaching a comprehensive agreement, with the exception that any upcoming prisoner exchange deal would include the kidnapped politician, Muhammad Qahtan, who was to be released. It constitutes a major disagreement and rejection by the Houthi group, but the government delegation did not bypass it, but a final agreement was reached on it.
Fadael added that it is highly expected to start mutual visits and agree on the final lists that include hundreds of names after Eid al-Adha, provided that the pace of implementation of the exchange process is accelerated. The Yemeni official indicated that the two parties decided to return to their leaderships to agree and present what was reached during the last round of negotiations, and work to end administrative matters related to the process of implementing the prisoner exchange, stressing that there are assignments from the Yemeni political leadership to clear the file of detainees and prisoners according to the principle of all for all. .
Majed Al-Fadael said: “We are continuing to work to reach a solution to the crisis of prisoners and detainees, which afflicts everyone, but under the principle of all for all without concessions or discriminating one party at the expense of the other, hoping that the Houthis will facilitate the exchange process, the disruption of which is a violation of the rules of international human rights and the international community under humanitarian conditions.” Difficult has passed for everyone during the last decade ». A source in the office of the UN envoy to Yemen had said, in media statements, that a proposal submitted by the United Nations to the two parties includes the exchange of 1,400 prisoners, who are included in lists agreed upon in previous rounds.
However, this was not agreed upon, according to the source, who pointed out that the same proposal will be presented at the next meeting of the Yemeni parties.
The United Nations described the eighth meeting of the supervisory committee for the implementation of the prisoner exchange agreement between the two parties to the conflict in Yemen, which was held in Jordan and concluded, as “detailed and serious,” while the Yemeni government reported that proposals were submitted to the leaders of each party for approval, and a new round of negotiations was held after Eid al-Adha.
The office of the Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, said in a statement, “The parties held detailed and serious discussions, in an atmosphere of responsibility, about the necessity of continuing to achieve steady progress in the gradual release of detainees under the principle of all for all.”
It is noteworthy that the Yemeni government and the Houthis had reached, during negotiations held in Switzerland last March, an agreement to exchange 900 prisoners. Under this agreement, a major exchange took place last April, which lasted for three days.
Before that, the last major exchange took place in October 2020, when more than 1,050 prisoners were released.
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