A Royal Air Force Typhoon jet taxis towards the runway at Liverpool John Lennon Airport in England at sunset, preparing to take off.
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Britain has announced it will provide defense military support, including fighter jets, to support Saudi Arabia amid escalating attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
Yemen’s Houthi militant group has launched a series of attacks on targets in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks. Attacks on the capital Riyadh’s airport resulted in multiple deaths, grounded flights and property damage, and last week targeted a facility belonging to oil giant Saudi Aramco.
British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting said in a statement on Tuesday: “The Houthis’ continued attacks on our ally Saudi Arabia are absolutely despicable. Their targeting of Riyadh’s airport in particular shows how far they are willing to escalate the situation in the region.”
New deployment joins UK’s existing Saudi mission
He added that the Saudi Air Force’s Typhoon fighter jets will fly defensive aviation missions to protect Saudi airspace from drones and missiles.
Mr Streeting said: “This builds on the UK equipment and personnel we already have in the country to defend against Houthi air attacks.”
Britain’s Ministry of Defense also said the jets would only be operated in a defensive role and would not carry out offensive attacks against the Houthis.
He said the Royal Air Force would also provide one. airbus British military advisers will also support the Saudi staff as the A400M Atlas fighter jets “support the movement of defense supplies within Saudi Arabia.”
“The escalation in violence in the Gulf could have serious implications for the UK homeland, with rising costs of living, disruption to energy supplies and increased costs for British businesses. It is also having a devastating impact on civilians in Yemen,” the MoD said.
“We unequivocally condemn Houthi attacks on civilian targets such as King Khalid International Airport, and we are clear that Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Yemen have the right to self-defense.”
Fighting intensifies in Yemen in aftermath of Iran war
Yemen’s civil war has returned to full-scale fighting between the Houthis and the country’s internationally recognized government amid broader regional escalation linked to the war between the United States and Iran.
Al Jazeera reported on Monday that the Houthis fired three ballistic missiles into a military camp in southern Yemen, killing at least 53 people. CNBC could not independently verify the report.
