Britain will deploy Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jets to Saudi Arabia after Riyadh requested additional help defending against escalating Houthi attacks, the UK government announced on October 21. The deployment will focus on protecting Saudi cities and critical infrastructure, while the aircraft will not carry out offensive strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.
The package also includes an Atlas A400M military transport aircraft and military advisers. Britain has extended its offer to provide air-to-air refueling for Saudi aircraft operating against the Houthis for another 90 days, according to the Ministry of Defense account reported by DW.
The announcement expands military assistance London said it had offered in September. It comes as fighting linked to Yemen’s civil war has intensified and Houthi attacks have increasingly targeted Saudi oil facilities and civilian infrastructure, according to DW’s October 13 account of the escalation. That report said Houthi attacks had repeatedly targeted Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport and affected oil and transport infrastructure.
The latest British move therefore adds an air-defense role to existing support, rather than announcing UK offensive operations inside Yemen. The stated scope of the Typhoon deployment, including its size and timetable, was not provided in the fetched report. Saudi Arabia and the United States accuse Iran of supporting the Houthis; Tehran denies the allegation.