SANAA, Yemen

The Yemeni Houthi group on Friday announced that it will release dozens of prisoners of the Yemeni government on Saturday as part of a unilateral initiative.

The Houthi-run Saba news agency cited a statement by Abdul Qader al-Murtada, head of the Houthi's prisoner affairs committee, saying that his group will carry out a "unilateral initiative" under which dozens of prisoners affiliated to the Yemeni government will be released.

He added that further details will be announced on Saturday on the release.

The Yemeni government is yet to comment on the Houthi announcement.

On Nov. 4, the International Committee of the Red Cross called on the Yemeni rivals to carry out new release operations.

The Yemeni government and the Houthis carried out a major prisoner exchange in April 2023, releasing around 900 prisoners and detainees from both sides, with mediation from the International Committee of the Red Cross and the UN following negotiations in Switzerland.

Yemen has seen a relative state of calm since April 2022 following a truce that halted hostilities between Yemeni government forces and the Houthi group that erupted in September 2014 when the Iran-aligned group seized the capital Sanaa.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar