The prisoners had been held in prisons run by Saudi-backed mercenaries on Yemen’s western coast before being released in Ansarullah’s latest military achievements and returning to the capital.
Abdulqader al-Murtada, head of Yemen’s National Committee for Prisoners’ Affairs, said during a press conference in Sanaa that 210 Yemeni prisoners held in the prisons of Saudi-backed mercenaries on the western coast had been freed.
Al-Murtada stressed that the freed prisoners were the same individuals included in the latest prisoner-exchange agreement, but said the Saudi side derailed the agreement through obstruction and intransigence.
He added that during the “Wallahu Ashaddu Basan wa Ashaddu Tankilan” operation, all of these prisoners, along with hundreds of other detainees who were freed as Yemeni armed forces entered and liberated the western coast, returned to their families.
The head of Yemen’s National Committee for Prisoners’ Affairs also said the freed prisoners had spent between five and eight years in prisons operated by Saudi-backed mercenaries on the western coast and that all of them were considered prisoners of war.
Al-Murtada further said Saudi-backed mercenaries had previously issued death and prison sentences against some of the freed prisoners.
Meanwhile, the welcoming ceremony for the freed prisoners was held in Sanaa in the presence of official representatives and large crowds.
The prisoners were freed following a large-scale operation by the Yemeni armed forces on the western coast, which began on Sept. 3, 2026.
Yahya Saree, spokesman for the Yemeni armed forces, said the operation resulted in the recapture of six areas in Taiz and Hudaydah provinces, covering 5,400 square kilometers, from Saudi-backed mercenaries, and led to the release of a large number of Yemeni prisoners.