A person waves as a Red Cross chartered plane carrying freed prisoners arrives at Sanaa Airport, amid a prisoner swap, in Sanaa, Yemen April 14, 2023 (Reuters)
Yemen: The Completion of Prisoner Exchanges
Reports
Sun, 16-04-2023 03:03 PM, Aden
Aden (South24)
Today marks the completion of the prisoners exchange between the internationally recognized Yemeni government and the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen and under the supervision of the International Red Cross.
The International Red Cross said that nearly 900 prisoners and detainees from both sides, including soldiers of the Saudi-led Coalition, were released during a 3-day operation.
Exchange flights between the Houthi-controlled Sanaa airport and the airports of Aden, Marib, Mocha, Riyadh and Abha, transported hundreds of prisoners in the largest prisoner exchange deal since the outbreak of the war.
The deal included top officials most notably the former Minister of Defense, Major General Mahmoud Al-Subaihi, who originate from South Yemen, in addition to the brother of the former Yemeni President, Major General Nasser Mansour Hadi.
The deal also included civilian detainees held by the Houthis, such as the four journalists sentenced to death on charges of espionage, who arrived on the third day of the prisoner exchange process at Marib airport.
With the completion of the exchanges, 706 Houthi prisoners are now out of prison, in exchange for 186 prisoners from the Southern forces, the Coalition and pro-government forces, in addition to civilian detainees.
South24 Center
YemenPrisoner ExchangeHouthisArab CoalitionRed Cross