SANAA, Dec 6 (NNN-SABA) – Yemen’s government said, it handed over 26 bodies of the Houthis yesterday, as a gesture of “goodwill,” ahead of the expected resumption of talks sponsored by the United Nations.
In the statement, broadcast by state-run television, the government said, the bodies were handed over to a local mediator, under the supervision of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
It said, the bodies belong to Houthi members who had been killed recently, in sporadic battles in the north-eastern provinces of Marib and al-Jawf, east and north-east of the Houthi-held capital, Sanaa.
It was reported that, the remains were transferred after the Houthi side verified their identities through the mediator.
Yahya Kazman, head of the government’s negotiation committee, said, the unilateral step is intended to demonstrate goodwill, in advancing the resolution of the issue of detainees, abductees, and those forcibly disappeared.
He noted that, the move comes ahead of a new round of negotiations on the detainee issue, scheduled to be held in the coming days, under the auspices of international partners.
The Houthis have yet to comment.
Last week, UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, said, he participated in a mediation meeting in Muscat, hosted by Oman, suggesting that, peace talks between the Yemeni warring parties would be resumed soon.
The Yemeni government and the Houthis carried out a major UN-mediated prisoner exchange in 2023, involving the release of around 900 detainees. An earlier large-scale swap took place in 2020, during which roughly 1,000 prisoners were freed by both sides.
Yemen has been engulfed in civil conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized control of large parts of the country, including the capital, Sanaa, prompting the internationally recognised government to relocate.
Frontline clashes have significantly declined since Apr, 2022, following the announcement of a UN-mediated truce, though the broader political settlement remains unresolved.– NNN-SABA