Families of Southern Prisoners Protest in Aden

Families of southern prisoners took to the streets in Aden today and cut off Alalam checkpoint, the main entry point to Aden, to demand the release of the southern prisoners who are languishing in the prisons of the Islah Party in Shabwah and Marib provinces.

This comes after the mediation efforts by the Southern Transitional Council and the International Red Cross failed. The efforts were stalled then rejected by legitimate government represented by the Muslim Brotherhood's (Islah Party), and some southerners affiliated with legitimacy.

The mediation committee, after great efforts and endeavors, was not able to broker a prisoner exchange deal due the many obstacles and demands put forth by the Yemeni Legitimate Government, including providing fake names of people who were not captured by the forces of the Southern Transitional Council and the Southern Resistance, and the purpose of this is to thwart the mediation efforts and add additional demands for the STC which bypass the Riyadh Agreement.

The Southern Transitional Council also refused to release prisoners requested by The Interior Minister Ahmed Al-Maysari, saying that the persons Al-Maysari wants released can not be part of this prisoner exchange process because they are associated with terrorist organizations and are wanted globally.

After the efforts of the International Red Cross failed the families took to the streets in Aden asking the Arab Coalition to get involved and free the southern prisoners who are being deprived of their rights and tortured by the Islah Militia affiliated with the Hadi Government that took control of Shabwah at the end of August.