Local Editor
Yemeni warring parties on Wednesday exchanged 35 prisoners in the country’s southern embattled city of Taiz through a mediation led by the International Committee of the Red Cross, a spokesman of the Taiz’s pro-Hadi forces said.
"We exchanged today (Wednesday) 19 prisoners from the Houthis and their allied forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh in return for 16 prisoners of our Taiz forces," spokesman Abdulrahman Saleh stated.
"The prisoner exchange was done after a five-month-long mediation coordinated by the International Committee of the Red Cross," he said.
Like other major cities, most of Taiz’s districts are still under control of Houthi and Saleh forces.
The warring parties now have been in talks in Kuwait since April under the auspices of the United Nations to end the war.
Last week, the delegates of both sides in Kuwait agreed to a major prisoner exchange to be carried out before the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan.
The move was considered as a show of goodwill to end about 14-month war and ease the prolonged humanitarian crisis.
The sides have submitted lists of about 7,000 prisoner requests, which include political detainees, to UN mediators.
UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said in a press conference last week that the International Committee of the Red Cross had met with the delegations to show its possible role in facilitate a release process.
The fragile ceasefire has been largely held since it went into effect on April 10 to pave a smooth road for the ongoing talks in Kuwait.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by Website Team
