United Nations published this video item, entitled “Yemen: More than 1000 Detainees Going Home – Press Conference (15 October 2020)” – below is their description.
Press conference by Mr. Martin Griffiths, UN Special Envoy for Yemen, on the situation in the Middle East – Yemen. This press conference follows the meeting by the Security Council. In a briefing to the Security Council, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffits praised parties to Yemeni conflict for reaching an agreement in late September to release over a thousand individuals and called for further discussions to release “all conflict-related prisoners and detainees.” “I pay here Mr. President, tribute to the Yemeni activists, actors and civil society organizations that have determinedly and continuously and many times successfully, in situations of peril, advocated for the release of civilians and for uncovering the fates of the forcibly disappeared,” Griffits said. Speaking to the Council via videolink, Griffits reported that the parties have started releasing the prisoners, according to the agreement they reached in Switzerland on 27 September and said he hopes “that the implementation of this agreement will build confidence and indeed a momentum by demonstrating a simple truth: that peaceful dialogue, the negotiation between parties can deliver road back to peace.” The Special Envoy cautioned however, that the prisoners release agreement “does not include many thousands more of Yemenis detained during the course of this conflict and it is therefore our obligation and the obligation of the parties to convene very soon to discuss further releases in line with the commitment they made in the Stockholm in December 2018 to release all conflict-related prisoners and detainees.” Griffits also reported that both parties remain engaged on the negotiations with his office over the Joint Declaration, but with very little progress, due to difficulties imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. “The primary goal of the Joint Declaration is to end what I call the shooting war and open the gateway to peace,” Griffits said. “Resuming this process, as I just said, is an imperative and frankly an obligation to the people of Yemen.”
United Nations YouTube Channel
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