Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Saturday, Aug 02, 2025

Yemen’s warring parties discuss in Switzerland prisoner swaps before Ramadan

Yemen’s warring parties discuss in Switzerland prisoner swaps before Ramadan

A new round of UN-brokered talks between the Iran-backed Houthis and the internationally recognized government on a prisoner swap began on Saturday in the Swiss city of Bern.
If successful, officials and analysts say, hundreds of detained Yemenis would be released, and it would be a major step toward more comprehensive negotiations to end the war in Yemen.

The Yemen UN Envoy Hans Grundberg said that the seventh meeting of the Supervisory Committee on the Implementation of the Detainees’ Exchange Agreement convened on Saturday in Switzerland under the auspices of his office and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The Yemenis will work to discuss the unconditional release of all prisoners, detainees and missing persons.

“I hope the parties are ready to engage in serious and forthcoming discussions to agree on releasing as many detainees as possible,” Grundberg said, urging Yemeni negotiators to work as hard as they could to produce real achievements that may free thousands of Yemenis before the holy month of Ramadan begins on March 23.

“With Ramadan approaching, I urge the parties to fulfill the commitments they made, not just to each other but also to the thousands of Yemeni families who have been waiting to be reunited with their loved ones for far too long.”

The UN and regional and international mediators have been pushing Yemeni sides to reach an agreement to free thousands of inmates, inspired by a significant halt in hostilities throughout the country since April last year under the UN-brokered truce.

The latest big prisoner exchange between the Houthis and the Yemeni government occurred in October 2020, with over 1,000 prisoners released.

Earlier rounds of discussions between the two parties failed to result in the release of captives, as Yemeni sides accused each other of requesting the release of fake names and even wanting to swap civilian abductees with warriors.

Majed Fadhail, deputy minister of human rights and a member of the government’s six-man delegation, said the talks would last for 11 days and that the government delegation would focus on exchanging all prisoners with the Houthis.

He added that the Presidential Leadership Council and the government had ordered them to ensure the success of the negotiations.

“Every day that an abducted person remains in jail is a source of enormous agony not just for his or her family, but also for us in the government since we share their anguish,” Fadhail said, according to the official news agency SABA.

Abdul Kader Al-Murtadha, head of the Houthi delegation, expressed hope that the discussions would yield “decisive” outcomes.

At the same time, Yemeni human rights advocates, organizations, and families of detainees and abductees have urged Yemeni factions to ease the suffering of thousands of detainees and abductees.

Amat Al-Salam Al-Hajj, chairperson of the Abductees’ Mothers Association, an umbrella group representing thousands of female family members of civilian war captives, called on all parties to emerge from the negotiations with an agreement to free all detainees throughout the country.

“I hope that these discussions will result in comprehensive solutions and the release of all abducted people. Their families and children have suffered for eight years while they have been tormented in jails,” she told Arab News.

Yemen’s Journalist Syndicate made another appeal to Yemeni negotiators to work for the release of imprisoned journalists, mainly four detained by the Houthis and condemned to death.

“As discussions begin on the file of prisoners and detainees, we appeal that the case of the abducted journalists is given priority and attention since they are innocent civilians who have been subjected to the cruelest kinds of torture and abuse,” the syndicate said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
×