Yemen's warring sides hammer out details of prisoner swap in Amman

Delegates representing Yemen's government and the Houthi movement have begun talks in Amman to hammer out the details of a prisoner swap.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab & agencies

17 January, 2019

Yemen - Prisoner exchange conference

Talks between Yemen's warring sides regarding the implementation of a prisoner exchange kicked off in Amman on Wednesday.

The exchange being discussed would allow for thousands of family members to reunite as part of UN-led peace efforts.

The prisoner swap was agreed to during UN-brokered talks in Sweden in December as part of confidence building measures between the country's government and Iran-alligned Houthi rebels.

"The two parties exchanged the list of prisoners in Sweden and they’re now discussing steps to implement it," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York.

Lists of some 15,000 prisoners were exchanged between the two sides during the Sweden talks.

Hadi Haig, the head of the government delegation, was cited by Reuters as saying said the groups were verifying the prisoner lists as part of a five-stage process before the exchange takes place.

Delegates say the exchange of prisoners will take place via the Houthi-held Sanaa airport in Yemen's north and the government-held Sayun Airport in the south.

The UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will oversee the prisoner swap process. The ICRC has said that Saudi Arabia will also need to guarantee that air space will be secure for flights to the two airports.

The war between the Houthis and troops loyal to the internationally-recognised government escalated in March 2015, when President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi fled into Saudi exile and the Saudi-led coalition intervened.

The conflict has unleashed the world's worst humanitarian crisis, according to the UN, which says 14 million Yemenis are on the brink of famine.

At least 10,000 people have been killed since the Saudi-led coalition intervened in March 2015, although rights groups maintain the actual death toll is five times higher.