More than 100 U.S. military advisers are now on the ground in Saudi Arabia providing intelligence and targeting assistance for the Kingdom’s military campaign against Iran-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen, with one U.S. official putting the number at roughly 200, CNN reported. Five sources familiar with the operation described the American presence, which comes as fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis intensifies and threatens another critical Middle Eastern shipping corridor.
The American personnel are working as part of a newly established joint forces command formed in recent weeks as U.S. officials detected increased Iranian assistance for Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia. U.S. officials believe hundreds of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officers are currently inside Yemen, working alongside the Houthis with the ultimate goal of shutting down the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean.
The United States has provided the Saudis with a targeting tool that allows military officers to see battlefield developments in real time, which one U.S. official compared to the Pentagon’s Maven system. The assistance also includes intelligence and geospatial targeting support. The American military personnel are not directly participating in Saudi strikes or refueling Saudi aircraft, keeping the U.S. role focused on intelligence and targeting assistance.
The increased support comes as American forces are already stretched after more than six months of fighting with Iran. U.S. troops across the region have faced repeated Iranian missile and drone attacks and extended deployments, while concerns have grown over munitions supplies. Much of the U.S. military’s attention remains focused on the Strait of Hormuz, including strikes against Iranian targets, escorting commercial vessels and maintaining the naval blockade of Iranian ports.
American military officials are also wary of becoming too closely associated with the Saudi strike campaign, particularly because of the possibility that a strike could result in civilian casualties. The expanded assistance nevertheless reflects growing concern in Washington and Riyadh that the Houthi campaign could develop into another major front in the broader regional conflict.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
