It is a good omen that tranquility is returning to Yemen. Endeavour by Riyadh and Sanaa to broker peace after almost eight years of warfare has its roots in the thaw attained between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Their landmark reconciliation under the Chinese aegis is perhaps changing the geopolitical mosaic of the Middle East, and the prisoners’ swap in Yemen is a case in point. Under a deal sponsored by Oman, nearly 900 detainees, mostly men fighting for Tehran-backed Houthi rebels, will be released, and likewise 181 Saudi prisoners will be set free. The presence of Saudi and Yemeni officials in Sanaa has reportedly been successful in ironing out the irritants, and could pave the way for a formal cessation of hostilities.
The three-day prisoners exchange programme — the first since 2020 — will not only go a long way in scaling down the level of mistrust between Saudis and Yemenis, but will also bring closer the UAE and Iran for a grand reconciliation. It will be an epoch-making moment as guns are silenced, and Houthis call it a day on the assurances that the Saudi-UAE coalition will cease airstrikes. Last but not least, the reconciliation will also ensure threat-free navigation through the Straits of Hormuz on both flanks of Arabian and Persian peninsulas. The good point is that Yemen, which is one of the poorest Arab countries, will be able to limp back to normalcy, and that too at a time when economic crunch is at its zenith.
The rubbing of shoulders by officials from Tehran and Riyadh for the first time in decades has dawned the hope of one of the biggest détente in the Middle East. The subsequent breakthrough in Yemen will come with an added impetus to extend the UN-brokered truce, which luckily has been holding for the last six months. In the same spirit, as both these nations rein in their proxies, Yemen’s 30 million populace will heave a sigh of relief. The mediators and the world body must ensure that Yemen is salvaged from the horrors of yesteryears, and a holistic rebuilding master plan is well-drafted.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 14th, 2023.
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