Yemen peace talks open with prisoner swap that will set 5,000 people free as Houthi rebels meet with government representatives
- Warring sides meet in Sweden for discussions that aim to quell three-year civil war
Yemen’s warring sides have agreed to free thousands of prisoners at the start of crucial peace talks aimed at ending a devastating conflict that has pushed millions of people to the verge of starvation.
Martin Griffiths, the UN special envoy, started shuttling between Houthi rebels and representatives of the Yemeni government, based in a castle just outside Stockholm on Thursday morning.
The Arab world’s poorest nation has been gripped by a three-year civil war fought between the Iranian-backed Houthis and a government largely backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
“During the coming days we will have a critical opportunity to give momentum to the peace process,” Griffiths told reporters.
Griffiths said his initial aim for the talks, the first since 2016, was to secure some confidence-building measures including the prisoner swap, the reopening of the airport in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, and the possible UN administration of the strategic Red Sea port of Hodeidah, through which almost 80 per cent of international aid enters the country.