Oman’s foreign ministry announced the release of 14 foreigners jailed in Yemen, including a British person, and their relocation from the Houthi-controlled Yemeni capital Sanaa to Muscat.
A British man, his wife and child, seven Indian nationals, a Filipino, an Indonesian, an Ethiopian, and a Myanmar person were among those released, according to the ministry, which did not specify what had led to their incarceration.
The Briton was identified as Luke Symons by the British authorities, who said he had been kept without indictment or trial since 2017.
“Luke was 25 years old when he was kidnapped by the Houthis. At the time, his son was just a few months old “In a statement, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said.
Truss stated, “He was allegedly mistreated, held in solitary confinement, and denied visits from his family.”
Symons moved to Yemen in 2012, according to Amnesty International, where he met and married his Yemeni wife. It claimed he had been accused of espionage for the British government by the Houthis, the de facto rulers of North Yemen, albeit he had not been prosecuted properly.
The 14 were released after Oman’s intervention, according to Houthi top negotiator Mohammed Abdulsalam, who made no mention of the causes or conditions of the detentions.
According to the Omani government, after negotiating with Saudi Arabia to enable the issuing of the appropriate licenses, all 14 were flown to the Omani capital on an Oman Royal Air Force plane in preparation for their return to their respective nations.
Yemen’s maritime and air space are controlled by a Saudi-led coalition, which participated in the Yemen war in March 2015 against the Iran-aligned Houthis. The coalition does not include Oman.
Under a United Nations-brokered pact, the warring parties in Yemen’s seven-year conflict agreed to a statewide cease-fire for the first time in years earlier this month.
