Houthis to Release 100 Yemen Government Prisoners in Humanitarian Move

Abdul Qader al-Murtada, head of the Houthi Prisoner Affairs Committee, announced the release of 100 Yemen government prisoners, following a directive from Houthi leader Abdul-Malik Badr Al-Din al-Houthi. This move, set for Saturday, follows a prior exchange in April 2023. Yemen's conflict remains a proxy war influenced by Saudi Arabia and Iran.

The head of the Houthi Prisoner Affairs Committee, Abdul Qader al-Murtada, said the Iran-backed movement would release 100 prisoners on Saturday belonging to Yemen's government forces.

A decision was issued by the leader of the Houthi movement, Abdul-Malik Badr Al-Din al-Houthi, Murtada said on Friday. Yemen's Houthis last released prisoners in April 2023 in an exchange of 250 Houthis for 70 members of Yemen's government forces.

"Tomorrow we will implement a unilateral humanitarian initiative in which we will release more than 100 prisoners," Murtada said in a statement. Yemen's conflict, which has killed tens of thousands of people and left millions hungry, has widely been seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

The Houthis are the de facto authorities in northern Yemen. The internationally recognised government is represented by the Political Leadership Council, which was formed under Saudi auspices last year and took over power from Yemen's president-in-exile. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in 2015 after the Iran-aligned Houthis ousted the government from Sanaa in 2014.

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