Alwaght- The recent Iran-Saudi Arabia détente agreement that ended seven years of tensions between the two countries also carried regional effects. Yemen, one a regional flash points, is these days seeing signs of peace thanks to that rapprochement. The case of prisoner swap between Ansarullah Movement of Yemen and Saudi Arabia has recently made apparent progress. Abdul Ghader al-Murtadha, the head of the National Committee for Prisoners (NCP) at the Sana’a-based National Salvation Government (NSG), said that the swap progress began on Friday and the first group of prisoners arrived in Sana’a International Airport.
According to this Ansarullah official, this round of prisoner exchange lasts for three days. The first stage included the release of 240 prisoners from the army and the popular committees of Ansarullah, and the second stage, which took place on Saturday, included the release of 350 Yemeni prisoners. The third stage will be held on Sunday. The first stage was between Sana’a and Aden, the second stage between Sana’a and Riyadh, and the third stage will be between Sana’a and Ma’rib.
Mahdi al-Mashat, head of the Supreme Political Council of Yemen, at Sana’a airport praised the “magnificent reception” of the Yemeni nation to the released prisoners.
“This reception is the least that can be offered to thank the prisoners and to honor them for their sacrifice and steadfastness in the prisons of the aggression coalition despite severe torture,” al-Mashat was quoted as saying.
Al-Mashat thanked the head of the NCP and all those involved in implementing the swap deal and told the enemy prisoners “we promise and assure you that we will not rest until the release of the last prisoner.”
On the opposite side, Abdullah al-Alimi, a member of the Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), in a tweet after arrival of the prisoners at Aden airport wrote: “On this blessed day of the blessed month of Ramadan, our prisoners were released, and on top of them are Mahmoud al-Sabihi, the former defense minister of the resigned government, and Nasser Mansour Hadi, the brother of Abd Rabu Mansour Hadi.”
Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the secretary-general of Ansarullah, pointed to the release of a number of the prisoners, saying that the measures to release the rest of prisoners will continue.
“We congratulate the released brothers and their families. We also tell the rest of the captives that the measures to complete the swap process will continue until the release of all the captives,” he maintained.
Ansarullah and the Saudi delegation reached an agreement in Geneva last month about the release of 887 captives from both sides, and if both sides agree, the rest will be released in the near future. According to figures, more than 2,200 of the forces of both sides are in captivity, and with the release of 887 people, more than 1,300 others will remain in captivity. The first round of prisoner exchange took place in October 2019, during which about 1,080 captives from both sides were swapped, but after that, the process was put on hold due to Saudi treachery.
Ansarullah-Saudi negotiations held in positive atmosphere
Saudi Arabia and Ansarullah these days are busy negotiating for a possible solution to end the 9-year-long war. The Oman-mediated negotiations between the two sides in Sana’a have just ended and reports suggest that the Saudi delegation left Sana’a on Thursday after discussion that last for a couple of days without any agreement.
The Saudi ambassador to the puppet administration in Aden said that there was an initial agreement on a ceasefire, which may be announced later if finalized. A Yemeni source said that Ansarullah made demands that Saudi negotiators are to convey to their leaders.
“It is still too early to say for sure that the current negotiations in Sana’a with the delegations of Oman and Saudi Arabia will definitely be successful, but it is clear that the atmosphere of peace prevails in the region, which gives hope and optimism. The realization of peace between Sana’a and Riyadh is a victory for both sides, and everyone should put aside old wounds and pains in order to maintain the atmosphere of peace and close the past page and open a new one, and refrain from trying to score points through the media, and we should not forget what happened for the disaster not to repeat itself,” Mohammad Al-Bakhiti, a member of Ansarullah’s political office, tweeted.
Mohammad Abdul Salam, chief negotiator and Ansarullah spokesman, said: “We concluded this round of negotiations with the Saudi delegation with the presence of the Omani mediators in Sana’a, and the atmosphere of the negotiations was positive and serious, and we agreed to continue maintaining the current peaceful atmosphere, including the ceasefire, and to maintain communication. We entered into very difficult negotiations and examined difficult and related issues in humanitarian, military, and political cases and made progress in some of them.”
Mohammad Ali al-Houthi, a member of Ansarullah, said that recent talks with Saudi Arabia in Sana’a did not move out of the humanitarian framework. He said the negotiations will be published by official networks.
“We discussed employees salaries whose cutting off was one of the Arab instruments to destroy Yemen government and punish the Yemeni nation,” he went on.
The Ansarullah officials welcomed ships entering the port of Aden uninspected, adding: “If the opposite side seeks peace, we are ready for peace; otherwise, we will continue war.
On the other hand, Ali al-Qahoum, one of the senior members of Ansarullah, expressed optimism about Oman’s efforts to establish peace and said that issues such as the release of prisoners, the cessation of attacks, the lifting of the siege, the end of the occupation, the reconstruction of Yemen, prevention of foreign interference, and respect to the country’s sovereignty were their priorities for peace.
Some sources with knowledge of the negotiations said the Saudis and Ansarullah agreed on a six-month ceasefire that would facilitate talks aimed at a two-year “power transition” period. This development marks a turning point in conflict and can relieve the pain of millions of Yemenis who have been living in the worst conditions over the past 9 years.
Earlier, some sources had said that the talks were positive and Saudi Arabia will likely announce a full ceasefire before Eid Al Fitr next week that marks end of the holy month of Ramadan. But Ansarullah will not agree to every type of ceasefire. The revolutionary movement demands as the only conditions of the ceasefire the lifting of the blockade, reopening the ports and Sana’a airport, paying salaries of all government employees, and pulling out of the occupation forces from the northern parts of the country. It asserted that it would not sign any ceasefire until these demands are met.
Although the UAE has withdrawn from some southern areas of Yemen, Abu Dhabi appears to plan to keep some Yemeni islands under its occupation, something Ansarullah is strongly opposed to.
Ansarullah is now stronger than before militarily and warns that it can force the aggressors out relying on domestic capabilities. Still, it gave Arab coalition time for free-will pullout. The Saudi negotiations with Ansarullah are actually because of the latter’s military capabilities Riyadh already experienced and does not want to experience again.
The course of security and political developments in the region is in a way that solution of crises, including Yemen crisis, is not out of reach, and now the ball is in Saudi court to make its final decision. Given the fresh Saudi positions, we will possibly see end of Yemen war in the near future.
