The National Human Rights Authority welcomed the agreement reached to launch a new phase of prisoner releases related to the aggression against Yemen.
In a statement received by the Yemeni News Agency (Saba), the Authority praised the efforts of the Sultanate of Oman, considering the agreement a long-awaited humanitarian response to the suffering of thousands of prisoners , detainees and their families, who have paid a heavy price due to the prolonged lack of resolution of this humanitarian file.
The Authority affirmed that Sana’a’s long-standing and consistent position—calling for the comprehensive , unconditional release of all prisoners and detainees on humanitarian, moral, and legal grounds—reflects a genuine commitment to human rights and embodies a clear determination to keep humanitarian issues separate from any bargaining or political calculations.
It noted that the halt in prisoner exchange operations since April 2023 was a direct reflection of, and compliance with, U.S. pressure on Saudi Arabia to keep the humanitarian file suspended, within a punitive political context tied to Yemen’s supportive stance toward the Palestinian people. This, the Authority said, constitutes a blatant violation of the principle of neutralizing humanitarian issues from political conflicts.
The statement stressed that any delay, selectivity in implementation, or use of the prisoner and detainee file as a pressure tool represents a clear violation of international humanitarian law, exacerbates the suffering of prisoners, detainees, their families, and places full responsibility on those who obstruct implementation or strip the agreement of its humanitarian substance.
The National Human Rights Authority called on relevant international and humanitarian bodies to assume their legal and moral responsibilities and to exert serious pressure to ensure the agreement is implemented without delay or procrastination, and to work toward ending this humanitarian file comprehensively, free from double standards.
It expressed hope that this step would mark the beginning of a serious humanitarian path leading to the full release of all prisoners , detainees, and serve as a gateway to addressing other urgent humanitarian entitlements—foremost among them the payment of public sector salaries, the reopening of Sana’a International Airport, the lifting of restrictions on the Port of Hodeidah, compensation for those affected, and the withdrawal of foreign occupation forces from Yemeni territory—as non-negotiable human and legal rights.
