AMMAN (Debriefer)--The Houthi group on Friday accused the Islah Party of attempting to obstruct a new round of talks on prisoners between the group and Yemen's internationally recognised government.
The chairman of the group's committee for prisoners' affairs and chief negotiator in the UN-sponsored talks held in Amman Abdulqadir Al-Murtada wrote on Twitter: "For two weeks, we have been working hard to make this round of talks a success in order to alleviate the suffering of prisoners but aggression mercenaries insist on obstructing it".
The Islah's control of the file of prisoners makes reaching a deal very difficult because this party is focusing on its elements and ignoring prisoners from other factions, he said.
The talks started last Sunday. A government negotiator said the two sides are seeking to reach a deal for swapping a large number of prisoners, not 300 prisoners as stated by a deal they reached in Geneva last year.
The UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths urged both sides to discuss the release of all prisoners and unconditionally release civilian detainees who have been arbitrary arrested.
In October, the two sides released 1.056 prisoners, in the largest swap since the conflict began six years ago.
