Prisoner of war exchange operations between the government and the Houthi rebels began successfully yesterday. Two International Red Cross planes, one from Aden and the other from Sanaa, transported over 300 detainees to the other destination. Moments of joy for the families of the prisoners and a glimmer of peace for the tormented country. Among those released by the Houthis [was] also the brother of former Yemeni president Hadi; he lived through the hardship of detention [imposed as] a revenge by the rebels against his brother. He is not a prisoner of war but a politician who was unjustly imprisoned for 7 years.
The swap operations will continue for another 2 days to complete the handover to their families of all detainees in the hands of the two rival governments. The total releases will be around 900 people. The success of the operation is a good sign for the future phases of the agreement between the two parties: truce and peace negotiations for a unitary government. These positive developments were possible following the agreement between Riyadh and Tehran to resume diplomatic relations with the mediation of Beijing.
