Saudi Arabia is planning a major offensive in civil war-torn Yemen, hoping to reverse gains made by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who seized a strategic Red Sea chokepoint last month, Reuters reported on Friday, citing Gulf and Yemeni officials and Western diplomats.
More than 100,000 Yemeni government troops could be mobilized for the offensive, depending on its scale, according to Reuters. The operation would be overseen by Saudi Arabia and supported by Saudi airstrikes. The US and other Western countries providing intelligence and material support to Riyadh are not expected to take part in combat operations.
According to Reuters, the Saudis are considering two options: an attack focused on recapturing the coastal area around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, or a broader offensive involving synchronized attacks on multiple fronts in Al-Bayda, Marib, Taiz and Al-Jawf.
Saudi Arabia first intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the internationally recognized government, which the Houthis had driven from the capital, Sanaa, the previous year. Large-scale fighting decreased significantly following a UN-brokered truce in 2022.
The fighting escalated again last month, with the Houthis accusing Riyadh of imposing an illegal “siege” on Yemen. The rebels have since captured the strategic port of Mokha and Perim Island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The Houthis said on Friday that Saudi forces had carried out 94 strikes on areas under their control over the previous 24 hours. Omar al-Bukhaiti, a spokesman for the Houthi-run government in Sanaa, accused the kingdom of deliberately targeting civilian sites, including schools and health facilities.
The group had earlier fired drones and missiles at Saudi Arabia, targeting energy facilities, but denied striking a power station in Medina, one of Islam’s holiest cities, dismissing the Saudi claim as a “lie.”
The escalation in Yemen comes amid the ongoing US-Iran war, with the Strait of Hormuz remaining closed to most shipping and US-Iranian talks on ending the conflict stalled.
Several Saudi allies have stepped up military support for the kingdom. Britain has agreed to provide air-to-air refueling for Saudi warplanes, while France is sending troops, radar and air-defense systems to help protect the Red Sea oil hub of Yanbu.
Pakistan has deployed between 30,000 and 40,000 troops to Saudi Arabia to help defend its borders and intercept missiles and drones, Reuters reported, citing a Pakistani official. Islamabad has also supplied air-defense systems, artillery, drones and anti-drone equipment, while Pakistani military advisers are working alongside Saudi personnel supporting Yemeni forces. Pakistan has not, however, decided to send troops into Yemen for combat operations.
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