The latest conversations between the Yemeni government and the Houthi movement to exchange prisoners has concluded. There has been an increasing focus on a longtime political detainee in the talks, which began on Friday. The talks were held in Jordan’s capital Amman under the auspices of the United Nations, which has negotiated ceasefires and agreements between the two warring sides. The latest round of talks ended on Sunday and will resume after the Eid al-Adha holidays which end in early July.
In this round of talks, the Houthi movement agreed to begin negotiations for the release of prominent politician Mohammed Qahtan, whom they’ve held since 2015. Qahtan was a senior figure in the opposition al-Islah Party and was first put under house arrest by the Houthis in early 2015. Qahtan was taken by Houthi operatives in April 2015 and has not been seen since. Last year, when the UN began brokering ceasefires and prisoner exchange talks, al-Islah criticized the government for not including Qahtan in the talks. In mid-April, the Houthis and Saudi Arabia-backed government held a three-day exchange of prisoners, which resulted in close to 900 detainees being released. This was the largest exchange of prisoners since over 1,000 prisoners were freed in October of 2020.
Read More: Yemen prisoner exchange talks wrap with focus on political figure
