A Saudi-Omani delegation arrives in the Yemeni capital to discuss a peace process with the Houthis

A delegation of representatives from Saudi Arabia and Oman arrived last night in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, to discuss with the leaders of the Huthi insurgency the possibility of launching a peace process to end almost a decade of war. civilians in the country, as confirmed by sources from the Supreme Political Council, the highest political body of the rebels.

The attendance of Saudi representatives represents a turning point given that Riyadh is the great ally of the Yemeni government recognized by the international community in the fight against the Houthis, backed by Iran, in what has long been considered a "war through third parties" between Iran and Saudi Arabia, but the recent normalization of diplomatic relations between the two great regional rivals has opened a window of hope for the end of the conflict.

"The Omani and Saudi delegations," reported sources from the unofficial Houthi news agency Saba, "will meet with the president of the Supreme Political Council, Field Marshal Mehdi al Mashat, about lifting the 'siege', with all their consequences" as well as "the end of the aggression"; the Houthis' term for Saudi military assistance during the war, "and the restoration of the rights of the Yemeni people."

Among the more specific issues that the delegation and the Huthi leadership will address will be "the payment of salaries to civil servants and the profits from oil and gas," the statement added.

Officially, the Houthis have only recognized the presence in the country of a delegation from Oman -- a mediator in the ceasefire efforts between the insurgents and the Yemeni Army -- which was received last night by the chief Houthi negotiator, Mohamed Abdulsalam. , as announced by the mediator himself on his Twitter account.

As a prelude to the visit of the delegations, Saudi Arabia has released 13 Houthi prisoners of war in the framework of a complicated process of exchanging detainees which, however, seems to have made progress in the last few hours, according to insurgent sources.

The president of the National Committee for Prisoners' Affairs, Abdul Qadir al Murtadha, announced on Saturday on his Twitter account the arrival of his comrades at Sana'a international airport, after the insurgents released a Saudi prisoner in exchange.

Moreover, Al Murtadha has explained that the released Houthi prisoners of war are indeed part of a larger-scale exchange, agreed last month in Switzerland under the management of the United Nations, involving 887 fighters, and could culminate by the end of the next week.

"The detainees released today (for Saturday) are part of the agreement with the United Nations, which will end up being fully implemented next Thursday," he stressed.

The visit of this delegation occurs two days after the appearance of information about a new truce that could serve as a possible prolegomenon to a "comprehensive peace agreement" in the country, sources close to the negotiations said on Friday, on condition of anonymity. , to various Arab media.

The first part of this process would begin with the declaration of a new truce until the end of 2023, according to the Al Araby al Jadeed portal, which would be accompanied by a relaxation of the restrictions on flights to the capital, under the control of the insurgency. since the beginning of the conflict at the end of 2014, the resumption of crude oil exports and the total reopening of the country's highways.

The government and the Houthis already agreed on a ceasefire in April last year that contributed to a significant drop in violence for most of 2022. Although the truce was not extended in October, the tense calm lasted for the following months, but a new rise in hostilities since February has unleashed fears of a reactivation of the conflict.

This new truce would function as a prologue to a comprehensive peace agreement that, according to Yemeni sources to the Asharq Al Awsat newspaper, would operate under the auspices of the United Nations and would mean a continuation of the aspects agreed upon in the new ceasefire and would also incorporate two other factors. crucial: the unification of the institutions of the divided country and the total exchange of prisoners of war between both sides.

This process would take place in three phases of six months, three months and two years and would also involve Saudi Arabia and Iran as the two great international allies of the Yemeni government and the Houthis insurgents, respectively, as well as Oman.

The war in Yemen has ended up plunging what was one of the poorest countries in the world into the worst humanitarian catastrophe at present, according to the United Nations. More than 21 million Yemenis (two thirds of the population) will need humanitarian aid this year and 17 million of them will need to receive it urgently to survive.

The conflict has left almost 380,000 dead, either from the fighting or from hunger and disease; more than 85,000 of them children, to which must be added four million displaced persons, according to data considered by UN agencies.