Al-Murtadha: Prisoner swap deal marks first step under Muscat agreement

SANAA, May 14 (YPA) – Head of Prisoners’ Affairs Committee Abdulqader Al-Murtadha said that the prisoner exchange agreement reached on Thursday marks the beginning of the Muscat agreement, affirming commitment to completing the remaining agreed phases.

In a statement to Al-Masirah, Al-Murtadha explained that the other side holds more than 2,000 prisoners who are expected to be included in the upcoming stages of the exchange process.

He added that the period until July 10 has been set to complete field committee procedures ahead of implementing the deal.

Al-Murtadha noted that they were able to uncover the fate of dozens of our prisoners who had been missing for more than 10 years, stressing that “there are no losers in prisoner exchange deals.”

He added that the delay in signing the agreement during this round stemmed from the postponement of most unresolved issues to this phase, in addition to a decline in the number of prisoners included following field verification carried out by the specialized committees.

Al-Murtadha concluded by saying that most prisoners are now included in the agreement, with guarantees in place to ensure the implementation of all agreed steps within the specified timeframe.

@E.Y.M