ABOUT 104 more prisoners captured during the war in Yemen were released by the Saudi-led military coalition on Monday.

This renewed diplomatic effort to halt the nearly nine-year conflict was made possible after the Chinese brokered a deal between the Saudis and Iran who were conducting a proxy war in Yemen. 

A UN-brokered deal led to the release of over 700 detained Houthis, and more than 180 other prisoners, including Saudi and Sudanese troops fighting with the Saudi-led coalition. 

This comes as the Houthis and Saudi Arabia say that they have made progress in negotiations to revive an expired ceasefire and embark on talks to settle the conflict. 

UN envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg said: “We have not seen such a serious opportunity for making progress towards ending the conflict in eight years. But the tide could still turn unless the parties take bolder steps toward peace.”

The al-Maliki Press Agency said that it was part of “efforts to stabilise the ceasefire and create an atmosphere of dialogue between the Yemeni parties to reach a comprehensive and sustainable political solution that ends the Yemeni crisis.”

The Houthis say that both sides will continue their talks after Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Islamic holy fasting month of Ramadan.