Saudi Arabia Seeks Air Defense Help Against Houthis While Holding Firm on Israel Normalization Demands

Regional officials say Riyadh is seeking assistance from international partners as missile interceptors run low, but there are no confirmed signs of military support

Saudi Arabia is reportedly running short of missile interceptors and has approached regional and Western allies for assistance as its confrontation with Yemen’s Houthi rebels continues, according to two regional officials who spoke on Wednesday.

The officials said Riyadh has asked France, Britain, Pakistan and Egypt to provide air-defense support to help protect against missile and drone attacks launched by the Houthis and other Iran-backed groups.

One official said the Saudi outreach began after the United States, the kingdom’s principal ally and weapons supplier, experienced its own depletion of interceptor supplies during a six-month war with Iran. Both officials requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

Saudi authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment. However, a Saudi source cited by Israel’s Kan public broadcaster said Riyadh would reject normalization with Israel even if Jerusalem offered assistance against the Houthis, unless the Palestinian issue is resolved. The report did not establish whether Saudi Arabia had actually sought Israeli assistance.

Saudi Arabia has consistently maintained that it will not establish normalized relations with Israel without an “irreversible pathway” toward Palestinian statehood, a condition firmly opposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

“The assumption that… Riyadh will be flexible on the matter of normalization with Jerusalem is mistaken,” the Saudi source told Kan.

The latest escalation involving Saudi Arabia and the Houthis represents another consequence of the wider war involving Iran. On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia accused the Houthis of attempting to strike Mecca with a drone, prompting regional condemnation but no confirmed military assistance.

Riyadh described Mecca, the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, as a “red line” and said its forces intercepted the drone. The Houthis denied that Mecca was the intended target. The city is approximately 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) from Yemen’s border.

Saudi Arabia Faces Growing Pressure to Secure Support

As Saudi Arabia confronts attacks from rebels backed by its regional rival, the kingdom is seeking both military assistance and secure export routes for its oil. Neither objective currently has a clear resolution.

A key Saudi oil pipeline has reportedly remained shut for weeks following an attack by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. Meanwhile, Houthi forces have targeted Saudi infrastructure and shipping in the Red Sea, where they have seized several islands near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Iran continues to target vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, while oil prices remain above $100 per barrel.

One regional official described Saudi Arabia as being in a “very difficult position,” explaining that the kingdom must defend military installations, important government facilities and oil infrastructure spread throughout the country.

According to the second official, Saudi Arabia is also attempting to organize an international response to the Houthi attacks. “But the decision now is to give diplomacy a chance,” the official said, noting that Oman and Egypt are spearheading de-escalation efforts in Yemen.

“This is just not a Houthis versus Saudi Arabia issue,” said Adam Baron, a fellow at the Washington-based think tank New America. “This is a matter of figuring out some way to guarantee wider patterns and pathways of international shipping.”

Two people familiar with the situation, including a Houthi official, said Oman hosted discussions between US and Houthi representatives last weekend concerning regional tensions. They provided no additional details and spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to brief the media.

Allies Express Solidarity as Military Assistance Remains Unconfirmed

On Tuesday, British Prime Minister’s spokesman Tom Wells confirmed that the United Kingdom maintains a “close defense partnership” with Saudi Arabia. However, he declined to say whether Riyadh had requested military assistance or whether British troops were stationed in the kingdom.

US and NATO officials have previously acknowledged serious shortages of missile interceptors in Europe, raising questions about the continent’s capacity to provide additional air-defense support.

A Turkish government official said Ankara was holding discussions with Iran and the United Arab Emirates in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The official, who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to comment publicly, did not disclose further details.

The Houthi escalation is testing a recently established defense agreement involving Saudi Arabia, NATO member Turkey and nuclear-armed Pakistan. Nevertheless, Turkish and Pakistani officials told the Associated Press that their governments had not received Saudi requests for assistance in response to the attacks. They also spoke anonymously.

Following the reported attempt to strike Mecca, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan and Saudi Arabia stand “unwaveringly, shoulder to shoulder.” Turkey’s foreign minister likewise expressed solidarity, saying that no country can “remain indifferent,” according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency.

Washington Maintains a Limited Role in the Conflict

The United States has supplied Saudi Arabia with billions of dollars in weapons and pledged additional support, but senior American officials have signaled reluctance to become directly involved in the conflict.

US Vice President JD Vance said Monday that Washington had maintained “constant contact” with Saudi officials and had “engaged in direct conversations with the Houthis.”

When asked whether Riyadh had requested American intervention, a US official said the military’s Central Command had established a task force focused on “enhancing intelligence sharing and planning support with Saudi forces.”

The official also said the US military hosted senior commanders from eight countries at a conference in Germany the previous week to discuss “opportunities for enhancing security cooperation in the Middle East.” The official declined to identify the participating countries and spoke anonymously.

Houthis Claim to Have Downed Saudi-Backed Coalition F-15

The Houthis claimed Wednesday that they had shot down an F-15 fighter jet operated by the Saudi-backed coalition over Yemen’s central Marib province. The group did not specify when the alleged incident occurred.

Video distributed through Houthi media channels appeared to show fighters moving what they described as the wreckage of an F-15 bearing a Saudi flag. The Associated Press said it could not independently verify the claim.

Representatives of the Saudi-led coalition and the Saudi government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said Wednesday evening that “Saudi warplanes launched 40 airstrikes… targeting the provinces of Taiz, Marib, and Hodeidah over the past 24 hours.”

Saree had previously claimed that Saudi forces carried out more than 450 strikes during the preceding week. He said the Houthis had responded by targeting a Saudi air base and a state-owned oil company facility in Yanbu, a Red Sea port city.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Travels to China as Regional Tensions Continue

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi traveled to China, the largest purchaser of Iranian oil, amid the ongoing regional conflict.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged the United States and Iran to show restraint and reopen the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible. According to China’s Foreign Ministry, he also voiced concern over the fighting spreading into Yemen and the Red Sea.

Araghchi said Tehran was seeking “the restoration of calm to the region and friendly and peaceful relations with our neighbors.”

China has refrained from directly entering the war, although President Xi Jinping renewed Beijing’s offer to help bring the conflict to an end during the BRICS summit in New Delhi over the weekend.

Oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have partially recovered as tankers take a route near Oman on the opposite side of the waterway, with guidance from US forces. Estimates vary because vessels can disable their tracking systems, but average flows are believed to range between 5 million and 7 million barrels per day.

That volume remains below half of the level recorded before the war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.