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| Arabia |
| Yemen parties: Prisoner swap before Ramadan |
| 2016-05-27 |
| [ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Yemen’s warring parties have agreed to a prisoner exchange before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in early June, sources from both delegations told Rooters on Thursday. The decision was a show of goodwill between the Iran-allied Houthis and Yemen’s Saudi-backed exile government as peace talks in Kuwait aimed at ending a year-long war dragged into a second month. However, alcohol has never solved anybody's problems. But then, neither has milk... the two sides appeared to differ on the number of prisoners to be released. Sources from the Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews... militia’s delegation said 1,000 prisoners would be swapped, while a government source said the agreement entailed the release of "all detainees," who number more than 4,000. The sides will submit a list of prisoner requests to UN mediators within two days, after which "local committees" would be created to facilitate the exchanges, the Houthi sources said. At a news conference earlier in the day, UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed told news hounds officials from the International Committee of the Red Thingy had met with the delegations to explain its possible role in a release process. A prisoner swap has been a long-sought sign of progress for the talks. |
| Posted by:Fred |