Yemen's Houthi rebels say 13 members freed by Saudi Arabia

Prisoners of war released in exchange for a Saudi detainee as peace efforts gain momentum

A photo posted on Twitter by Houthi official Abdulqader Al Mortada shows the Yemeni rebels at Sanaa airport on Saturday, after being freed by Saudi Arabia. EPA

Yemen's Houthis rebels said Saudi Arabia released 13 prisoners of war on Saturday as an Omani delegation arrived in the rebel-held capital Sanaa for talks on ending the country's years-long civil war.

Abdulqader Al Murtaza, a Houthi official in charge of negotiations on prisoner exchanges in Yemen’s conflict, said the 13 men were freed in exchange for a Saudi prisoner held by the Houthis. He did not say when the Saudi prisoner was released.

A larger prisoner exchange between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government is scheduled to take place on Tuesday under a UN-brokered deal agreed on last month. Mr Al Murtaza said that exchange would involve nearly 900 prisoners from both sides.

The exchange of prisoners has been one of the sticking points between the two sides in international efforts to broker an end to the war that began when the Iran-backed rebels seized the capital Sanaa in late 2014.

However, recent developments, including an agreement by Saudi Arabia and Iran to restore diplomatic ties after a seven-year rift, have raised hopes that the warring parties are moving closer to a truce and peace negotiations.

The Houthis' chief negotiator, Mohammed Abdul-Salam, said Omani officials arrived in Sanaa on Saturday for talks on renewing a UN-brokered ceasefire deal that expired in October.

Yemeni government sources told The National that Saudi officials were expected to attend the talks, although this has not been confirmed by Saudi Arabia.

Houthi-run Al Masirah TV reported that a delegation led by the Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed bin Saeed Al Jaber, would visit Sanaa on Sunday.

An official at Oman's foreign ministry said on Sunday that Muscat was hopeful of bringing the Houthis and the government to the negotiating table.

“The Omani delegation from the foreign ministry is already in Yemen. The focus is to get all warring groups at the table to talk peace,” the official told The National, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“It is not about the peace mediators; it is about the Yemenis themselves opening up brotherly negotiations to end the civil war. We feel confident because all warring groups are happy about a peaceful solution and are keen to come out of the political deadlock.”

He would not give a time frame for talks between the Yemeni political rivals but said, “hopefully the first session will be before end of this week.”

The war in Yemen has killed more than 150,000 people, including fighters and civilians, and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.

Rebel-government negotiations on a political solution to the conflict are part of a three-stage peace plan drawn up by Saudi Arabia and the Yemen government, sources said.

“Phase one includes the opening of sea, land and air ports, securing the Saudi borders, paying public servant salaries, unifying banks and swapping all prisoners,” a government source told The National following a meeting in Riyadh on Thursday between Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman and Rashad Al Alimi, head of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council.

“The second phase includes Yemeni-Yemeni talks, and phase three is a comprehensive political process leading to elections under the UN's supervision.”

Yemeni officials announced this week that the Saudi-led coalition supporting the government had ended restrictions on imports to Yemen's southern ports that were imposed in 2015 as the conflict escalated.

Commercial ships will be allowed to dock directly in southern ports, including Aden, without having to stop at the Saudi Red Sea port of Jeddah for security checks, and bans on certain goods would be lifted, they said.

This follows the easing of restrictions in February on commercial goods entering the Houthi-held western port of Hodeidah, the country's main seaport.