The UK will deploy RAF Typhoon fighter jets to Saudi Arabia to help defend it against increasing Houthi attacks, the British government announced on Tuesday, according to DW. The deployment follows a Saudi request, and the jets will be used in a defensive role.
The Ministry of Defence said the jets will protect Saudi cities and critical infrastructure from drones and missiles. It said they will not carry out offensive strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, according to DW.
The ministry said the Typhoons will fly "defensive counter air missions" and will "operate in a defensive role," according to Euronews.
Britain will also send an Atlas A400M transport aircraft and military advisers. It has also extended its offer of air-to-air refuelling for Saudi aircraft for another 90 days, according to DW.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting called the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia "absolutely despicable and dangerous for the region" and an "intolerable escalation," according to Euronews.
The announcement comes after a Houthi strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International airport earlier this month. According to Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation, as reported by Euronews, the strike left 13 people dead and more than 300 injured.
DW gives a different toll. It says strikes on the airport have killed at least 18 people and wounded hundreds this month, according to unnamed reports. The sources do not say whether the 13-death strike and the 18-death figure refer to the same attacks, and the 18-death figure is not independently confirmed.
The Houthis declared a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in July. Yemen’s civil war has escalated since a years-long truce collapsed in September, according to DW. Houthi attacks have increasingly targeted Saudi oil facilities and civilian infrastructure, and have attacked tankers, disrupting oil exports, DW reports.
Saudi Arabia and the United States accuse Iran of supporting the Houthis. Tehran denies the allegation, according to DW.
DW separately reports that a Houthi strike on Monday killed 58 people at a training camp for Saudi-backed government security forces, according to authorities inside Yemen. The sources do not independently confirm this figure.
The jets, the A400M and the advisers are being deployed now. British refuelling support for Saudi aircraft runs for another 90 days. The sources do not say how long the jets will remain in Saudi Arabia.
The sources do not include a response from the Houthis to the UK deployment or a statement from Saudi Arabia on it. PBS NewsHour provided only a headline and a short excerpt on this story and adds no details on the deployment.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.