Yemen government and Houthi rebels exchange lists ahead of planned prisoner swap

Peace talks in Sweden are focused on confidence-building measures

Representatives from the Yemeni government delegation, right, and those from the Houthi rebels, pose for a photo with representatives the UN Special Envoy for Yemen and the International Red Cross Committee (ICRC). The ICRC is expected to implement the prisoner exchange. AFP PhotoShow less

Yemen’s government and Houthi rebels yesterday exchanged lists of prisoners they want released in a confidence-building measure aimed at advancing peace talks

The warring parties also set January 20 as a preliminary deadline for a prisoner swap.

The two delegations, which are currently engaged in United Nations brokered negotiations in Rimbo, Sweden, presented more than 15,000 names to the UN's Yemen envoy Martin Griffiths.

"We presented a list of 8,576 names of workers, political activists, youth, teachers, students, children, tribal figures, businessmen, women and doctors that have been forcibly detained and hidden in Houthi prisons," a government official told The National.

Yemen government delegate Brig Gen Asker Zaeel, right, shakes hands with Houthi rebel delegate Abelqader Mourtada over the negotiating table during the peace talks in Rimbo. AFP Photo

The number of captives held by the rebels exceeds 18,000, the official said.

Among the Yemenis believed to be detained in Houthi prisons, the official said there were 1700 minors and 90 women. The government's list also includes members of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh’s family and Bahai groups.

The government claims that 1200 of the prisoners held by the Houthis have been tortured, and that 132 have died in captivity.

“The delegation has asked for guarantees that the militias will end their brutal operations of abducting people from their homes and restricting the freedom of Yemenis,” the official said.

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Hadi Haig, who heads the government's prisoner swap committee, told The National on Monday that the deal would be carried out in stages, adding that it could take up to 48 days before all prisoners were exchanged.

In the coming weeks, the government and rebels are expected to exchange information concerning the fate of the detained, before agreeing to a final list of prisoners to be released.

The government is hoping rebels will demonstrate goodwill by releasing some high-profile prisoners before talks end on Friday. Former minister of defence Gen Mahmood Al Soubaihi,  Maj Gen Naser Mansour Hadi, who is the brother of President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi, and the leader of Yemen's Islamist Al Islah party, Mohammed Qahtan are among those held in Houthi prisons. They have been detained since 2015.

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Read more: Accounts of prison torture forces Houthi leader to investigate

Medic Farouk Baakar demonstrates how he was shackled to a wall during his torture in a prison run by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. All photos by Nariman El-Mofty / AP Photo

Monir Al Sharqi disappeared for a year and some in his family and other activists believe he was detained and tortured by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who finally doused him with acid and dumped him in a stream. All photos by Nariman El-Mofty / AP Photo

Anas Al Sarrari recalled how after 60 days of being hung by his wrists from the ceiling and being beaten in a prison, he was thrown into a cell and discovered his legs no longer worked.

Mahmoud Al Ghabri, a journalist, arrested by Houthi militiamen on December 22 2015 and held for three days, during which his captors beat him, burned him with cigarettes and dripped melted plastic over his body.

The mother, right, and wife of of a Yemeni detainee who has been held for months in Houthi prison, pose for a photograph.

Mohammed al-Washie, a journalist, was detained in October 2015 and during torture, his captors broke his leg.

The 24-year-old student was beaten and hung from a ceiling by his handcuffed wrists.

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"I hope that the Houthis are serious about this agreement and will stick to the deal because this issue has a huge impact on thousands of lives, not only on the detainees but also on their families who are waiting to hear about the fate of their loved ones," Yemen's Minister of Agriculture, Othman Hussein Faid Mujali, told The National.

The Yemeni official, who said rebels are continuing to abduct and detain hundreds of victims, urged them to stop kidnappings immediately, describing the abuses as a breach of humanitarian law.

UN-led talks in the Swedish town of Rimbo entered their sixth day on Tuesday. The consultations have so far side-stepped discussions on a political transition, focusing instead on a prisoner swap, the reopening of Sanaa airport and securing UN administration of the strategic Red Sea port of Hodeidah.

An exterior view of Johannesberg Castle, where peace talks on Yemen are taking place, in Rimbo, Sweden, December 4, 2018. Reuters

The prisoner exchange is expected to be implemented by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The prisoners will be flown out of two airports, Seyoun in central Yemen and rebel-held Sanaa.

"The ICRC will act as a neutral intermediary between the parties and provide technical and, if needed, logistical support to facilitate the transfer and release [of captives]," the organisation's spokeswoman Jesscia Moussan El Zarif told The National.

“We hope that the implementation of the agreement will bring comfort to many families who have lost contact or have been separated from their loved ones due to the conflict,” she said.

Ms El Zarif clarified that the ICRC is only facilitating the release and transfer of prisonsers and has no control over who will be released.