Eighth Meeting on Yemen Prisoner Exchange Ends with No Agreement

The delegations at the Amman talks. (OSESGY)
The delegations at the Amman talks. (OSESGY)
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Eighth Meeting on Yemen Prisoner Exchange Ends with No Agreement

The delegations at the Amman talks. (OSESGY)
The delegations at the Amman talks. (OSESGY)

The eighth meeting of the Yemeni Supervisory Committee on the Implementation of the Detainees Exchange Agreement concluded in the Jordanian capital Amman on Sunday with the gatherers failing to reach a deal. 

The meeting was sponsored by the office of the Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen (OSESGY) and International Committee of the Red Cross. 

“Based on the positive momentum achieved earlier in March in releasing a large group of detainees, the parties engaged in detailed, serious, and responsible discussions, emphasizing the necessity of achieving tangible progress to reach a gradual release of based on the 'all-for-all' principle,” said an OSESGY statement. 

“The two parties also agreed to continue consultations on the proposals and ideas discussed and to consult with their leadership, to agree on a detailed proposal that includes priorities identified by the parties for this round and a mechanism for implementation,” it added. 

“The Office of the Special Envoy will work with the parties during the coming days to ensure continued engagement and coordination of efforts to achieve progress in this humanitarian file that still haunts thousands of Yemeni families,” it went on to say.  

“The Office of the Envoy urges the parties to increase their efforts to alleviate the suffering of the detainees and their families as soon as possible,” it continued.  

The government delegation in Amman is hoping that a new swap would include Mohammed Qahtan, in line with a 2216 UN Security Council resolution. 

Spokesman for the delegation Majed Fadael revealed that the Iran-backed Houthi militias have agreed to a political prisoner exchange, which would include Qahtan. 

He described the latest round of consultations as positive. The proposals that were made will be relayed to the leaderships of the parties that were present at the talks ahead of holding a new round of negotiations, he added. 

The new round will be held after next week’s Eid al-Adha holiday. 

Fadael stressed that the delegation is following the directives of the Presidential Leadership Council and government and that it will not spare an effort that would end the suffering of the relatives of the prisoners and ensuring the release of all detainees. 



UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says Israeli forces raided four of its schools in east Jerusalem, ordering their closure.

Israel has severed all ties with the agency, known as UNRWA, and bars it from operating in its territory. It says the agency allowed itself to be infiltrated by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, allegations denied by UN officials.

UNRWA said police entered a training center by force on Tuesday, firing tear gas and sound grenades and ordering its evacuation. It said 350 students and 30 staff were present during the raid on the Qalandiya Training Center.

It said police and city officials ordered the closure of three other schools in east Jerusalem, two of which proceeded with the school day.

Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne said police did not enter the UN buildings and that Jerusalem municipal authorities carried out the closures. He said police were deployed to protect the city workers, using “riot dispersal” means in one case where a crowd threw stones at them outside a UN facility.

Roland Friedrich, UNRWA director for the occupied West Bank, including east Jerusalem, said the raids were an “unacceptable violation of United Nations privileges and immunities,” and a “denial of the right to education for children and trainees.”