Saudis among scores of Yemen war prisoners freed on day two of swap

Scores of prisoners of war, including Saudis, were freed on Saturday as part of a cross-border exchange between a Saudi-led military coalition and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, the International Committee of the Red Cross said.

The flights connecting Saudi Arabia and Houthi-held territory in Yemen were part of a multi-day transfer involving nearly 900 detainees that comes amid peace talks which have raised hopes for an end to Yemen's eight-year-old war.

The first flight of the day took off from the southern Saudi city of Abha before 9 am (0600 GMT), headed for Yemen's Houthi-held capital Sanaa with 120 Houthi rebel prisoners, ICRC public affairs and media adviser Jessica Moussan said.

It was followed by a flight from Sanaa carrying 20 former detainees, among them 16 Saudis and three Sudanese.

Sudan is part of the Saudi-led coalition and has provided ground troops for the fighting.

In addition, 100 Houthis were due to be flown on three flights to Sanaa from Mokha on the Red Sea coast, a town held by Yemen's coalition-backed government.

An AFP journalist in Abha said at least three buses brought the prisoners onto the tarmac at Abha airport, which has previously come under attack from Houthi drones and missiles.

Wheelchairs were positioned near the buses to take some of the prisoners to the plane.

On Friday, 318 prisoners were transported on four flights between government-controlled Aden and Sanaa, reuniting with their families ahead of next week's Muslim holiday of Eid Al Fitr.

The total number of prisoners of war on both sides is unknown.