Qatar welcomed an agreement between Yemen’s warring parties to release around 1,600 conflict-related detainees following UN-backed negotiations in Jordan.

Qatar welcomed an agreement between Yemen’s warring parties to release around 1,600 conflict-related detainees following UN-sponsored negotiations in Jordan’s capital, Amman.

In a statement on Thursday, Qatar’s foreign ministry praised the efforts of Jordan, the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and all parties involved in reaching the deal.

The ministry reiterated Qatar’s support for regional and international efforts aimed at ending Yemen’s crisis through dialogue and peaceful means in a way that supports the security and stability of Yemen and the wider region.

UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg described the agreement as “an unprecedented number in the history of the current conflict in Yemen”, adding that it followed 15 weeks of intensive negotiations under UN auspices in Amman.

“The parties agreed today to release over 1,600 conflict-related detainees,” Grundberg said, calling it “a moment of profound relief for thousands of Yemenis”.

The agreement was reached between the Iran-backed Houthis, who control northern Yemen, and the Saudi-backed internationally recognised government.

Saudi state news agency SPA, citing coalition spokesman Major General Turki Al-Maliki, reported that the parties had agreed to release 1,750 prisoners, including 27 coalition detainees, among them seven Saudis.

The International Committee of the Red Cross, which will oversee the releases as a neutral intermediary, described the deal as a “crucial step forward”.

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 and triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. A UN-brokered truce in 2022 significantly reduced fighting, though a comprehensive political settlement has yet to be reached.