The Supervisory Committee on the Implementation of the Detainees’ Agreement concluded its ninth meeting on Saturday, 6 July, in Oman. Co-chaired by the Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen (OSESGY) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Supervisory Committee convenes negotiation delegations from the conflicting parties in Yemen to support them in fulfilling their obligations to release all conflict-related detainees per the Stockholm agreement following the “all for all” principle.
The negotiations led to a significant breakthrough, where the parties reached an understanding on releasing Mohamed Qahtan, a matter that has been contentious for years. They additionally agreed to a follow-up meeting to finalize the names of detainees to be released and arrangements pertaining to the release of Qahtan.
“Thousands of Yemenis are waiting to be reunited with their loved ones. Despite the positive progress, much more needs to be done, and faster, to provide relief to the suffering families,” said Hans Grundberg, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen. He called on the parties to continue working with his Office to finalize the implementation plan for this understanding, including names of detainees to be released, as well as to agree on more release operations. He thanked the Sultanate of Oman for hosting the meeting and commended their continued support for UN mediation efforts in Yemen.
Grundberg also reiterated the United Nations repeated calls for the parties to refrain from the arbitrary detention of civilians and to respect Yemenis’ rights under international law. He specifically repeated the demand for the immediate and unconditional release of UN personnel and aid, and civil society workers who were arbitrarily detained in Sana’a and continue to be held in incommunicado detention.
“The United Nations remains committed to the important work of reuniting Yemeni families with their loved ones who are detained in relation to the conflict. As we continue this mission, we must also speak against the arbitrary detention of all civilians and lament the agony of their families and loved ones. Nothing short of their immediate and unconditional release will suffice.”
