Yemen – Prisoner exchange deal to complete between the army and the Houthis in Taiz

A prisoner exchange agreement reached in Taiz governorate, southwest of Yemen, between the legitimate government and the Houthi militia resulted in the exchange of 206 prisoners and detainees from both sides. The deal included the release of around 70 Houthi prisoners, in return for 136 prisoners and kidnapped civilians and soldiers from the legitimate government, and it was done through local mediation away from the supervision of the United Nations organizations, with joy spread among the prisoners who were released from prisons. Several prisoner exchange deals between government forces and the Houthis have already been reached on several fronts, with local mediation and without the intervention of the United Nations and the International Cross Committee; last October, the Yemeni government and the Houthis exchanged over two days 1,056 prisoners from both sides, including 15 Saudis and 4 Sudanese, in the largest prisoner exchange since the war began. It is noteworthy that there are more than 15,000 prisoners, detainees, and abductees, according to reports submitted by the Yemeni government and the Houthis during the Sweden talks.