The UK will deploy RAF Typhoon fighter jets to help defend Saudi cities and critical infrastructure against escalating Houthi missile and drone attacks.
The aircraft will fly defensive patrols to intercept aerial threats over the Gulf country.
London will also provide an RAF A400M transport aircraft to move military equipment within the kingdom and send military advisers to assist Saudi staff officers.
The measures expand an existing British deployment of air defense equipment and personnel intended to protect Saudi Arabia from missile and drone attacks.
London will also extend aerial refueling support for Saudi air operations.
Renewed Yemen Fighting
Yemeni government forces launched an offensive this month to recapture Houthi-held territory, regaining ground near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
The campaign follows renewed clashes in September between the Houthis and Yemen’s internationally recognized government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia.
Renewed hostilities ended the relative calm brought by a UN-brokered truce in 2022 between the Houthis and government forces supported by a Saudi-led coalition.
The latest escalation has also drawn Yemen further into the wider US-Israeli war against Iran, with Houthi attacks targeting Riyadh’s international airport and Saudi Aramco facilities.
In Yemen’s southwestern highlands, Houthi forces have surrounded the city of Taiz and cut its main supply route from Aden, the government’s southern base, restricting deliveries of food, fuel, and humanitarian aid.
More than 250,000 people have fled the renewed fighting, around half of whom have sought shelter in Taiz city and the surrounding governorate, according to the UN.
Aid agencies warn that essential supplies are running dangerously low.
Wheat flour stocks in affected areas are nearly exhausted, while fuel shortages threaten water pumping stations and hospital operations, putting further strain on a health system already struggling with disease outbreaks.