LONDON — Britain announced Tuesday that it is deploying Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jets to fly defensive patrols over Saudi Arabia, expanding its military support for the kingdom as Houthi missile and drone attacks intensify.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said the Typhoons will “conduct defensive counter-air operations over Saudi Arabia, helping to protect Saudi cities, civilian populations and critical national infrastructure” from missiles and drones fired by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, the Associated Press reported.
The jets will intercept missiles and drones in the air but will not strike Houthi targets on the ground in Yemen, Streeting said, stressing there is no military solution to the conflict. “RAF Typhoons will fly defensive air missions to help protect Saudi airspace from drones and missiles,” he said.
The package also includes an Atlas A400M military transport aircraft and British military advisers to support Saudi staff officers, according to the AP. Streeting also extended Britain’s air-to-air refueling support for Saudi air operations by another 90 days.
The announcement came as Saudi Arabia said Tuesday it had downed a missile over the capital, Riyadh, where the main international airport remains closed after being struck several times this month, The Times reported. A strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid airport on October 10 killed 13 people, Reuters reported.
The Typhoons will be based in Qatar, flying defensive missions over Saudi skies, according to The Times. RAF jets have previously flown similar defensive missions to protect Gulf states and Cyprus from Iranian missiles and drones.
Britain is not the only Western power stepping in. France has agreed to deploy defense assets to the region, and more than 100 American military advisers are on the ground providing intelligence and targeting support under a newly established joint forces command, CNN reported. Pakistan has forces stationed in Saudi Arabia, and Egypt’s parliament is weighing whether to authorize military support — a vote now expected on October 26.
The Houthis intensified their attacks on Saudi Arabia after announcing in July that they would target Saudi shipping in the Red Sea and infrastructure inside the kingdom, following a Saudi attack on the Houthi-controlled airport in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, according to CNN. In recent weeks they have repeatedly struck Riyadh’s airport, in what CNN called the deadliest attacks on Saudi Arabia in more than a decade.
This is a developing story. Zark News will update it as the deployment proceeds.
Sources: Associated Press; CNN; The Times.
