Barran Press
The head of the Yemeni government negotiating delegation, Yahya Kazzman, on Sunday, June 30, 2024, linked the success of the ongoing consultations in the Omani capital, Muscat, to the disclosure of the fate of politician Mohammed Qahtan. Qahtan has been held captive by the Houthis for nine years without any contact with his family or visits.
Kazzman made these remarks during the opening of the ninth round of prisoner and abductee negotiations, which involves the internationally recognized Yemeni government delegation and the Houthi group, designated as a terrorist organization by several countries. The talks are being held in Muscat under the auspices of the UN envoy to Yemen and the International Committee of the Red Cross, according to the official Yemeni news agency Saba.
Kazzman explained that the political leadership decided to participate in the consultations, seeing them as a good opportunity, with the presence of regional and international mediators, to secure the release of detainees, including those recently abducted.
He emphasized that one of the goals of their participation is "the release and exchange of politician Mohammed Qahtan," whom he described as "a major obstacle that needs to be resolved before moving on to a broader process and closing this humanitarian file by releasing all detainees and abductees held by all parties without exception."
He assured that the Presidential Leadership Council and the government are "taking full responsibility, commitment, and seriousness regarding this humanitarian file and working to release everyone on a 'all for all' basis."
He stated, "We are participating today in our ninth meeting of the prisoner and abductee negotiations round, and we hope this meeting will be a positive step towards achieving justice and freedom for all those who have been detained and abducted."
Kazzman highlighted that the government team previously opted out of these negotiations due to the continued violations by the Houthis against innocent civilians.
He touched upon the expanding scope of abductions, which he said has included dozens of humanitarian and relief workers, including women.
He stated, "We believed that they should be released unconditionally before entering any round of negotiations, in addition to allowing the detained civilian and senior political figure, one of the four included in the UN Security Council resolution, to communicate with his family."
On Saturday, the Yemeni government and the Houthi group announced their intention to attend a new round of prisoner exchange negotiations in the Omani capital, Muscat.
In April 2023, the Yemeni government and the Houthi group carried out the latest prisoner exchange deal, releasing nearly 900 prisoners and detainees from both sides, mediated by the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations, following bilateral negotiations in Switzerland.
Since April 2022, Yemen has witnessed a lull in the war that began nearly ten years ago between the Yemeni army and other formations loyal to the Yemeni government and Houthi forces, who have controlled provinces and cities, including the capital Sana'a, since 2014.