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Associated Press

Saudi Arabia is running low on missile interceptors and has turned to regional and Western allies for help as its stand-off with Houthi rebels in Yemen drags on, two regional officials said on Wednesday.
The officials said the Saudis have asked France, Britain, Pakistan and Egypt to deploy air-defence support to the region to help defend against missiles and drones fired by Houthis and other Iran-backed groups.
The outreach was initiated because Saudi Arabia’s main ally and arms supplier, the United States, has seen its own stock of interceptors dwindle over the course of a six-month war with Iran, one official said. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.
Saudi officials did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.
The fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis is the latest front to erupt as a result of the Iran war. On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia accused the Houthis of trying to attack Islam’s holiest city with a drone; the region responded with condemnation but no sign of military support.
The kingdom declared Mecca, the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, a “red line” and said it had intercepted the drone. The Houthis denied targeting Mecca, about 1,100km (680 miles) from Yemen’s border.

With the world’s biggest oil exporter under fire from rebels backed by the Saudis’ regional adversary, the kingdom needs a safe outlet for its crude as well as military aid. There is no clear path to either.
A crucial Saudi pipeline has been shut down, reportedly for weeks, after an attack by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq.
The Houthis have been targeting infrastructure in the kingdom and its shipping on the Red Sea, where they have seized several islands in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. And Iran is still targeting ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices remain above US$100 a barrel.
One of the regional officials said Saudi Arabia is in a “very difficult position”, since it has to protect not only its military bases and vital government installations but also oil facilities across the kingdom.
The second official said Saudi Arabia was also seeking to rally its international allies to launch a collective response against the Houthis.
“But the decision now is to give diplomacy a chance,” the official said, adding that Oman and Egypt were leading efforts for de-escalation in Yemen.
Last weekend, Oman hosted a meeting between US and Houthi representatives to discuss the regional tensions, said two people familiar with the matter, including a Houthi official. They gave no further details and spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.
On Tuesday, the British prime minister’s spokesman, Tom Wells, confirmed the UK has a “close defence partnership” with Saudi Arabia. But he declined to say whether Saudi Arabia has asked for military aid or say whether British troops are in the country.

US and Nato officials have previously acknowledged a critical shortage of missile interceptors in Europe, raising questions about Europe’s ability to assist.
A Turkish government official said Turkey was engaged in talks with Iran and the United Arab Emirates to try and lower tensions. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the issue publicly, did not provide further details.
The attacks are the first test of a new defence pact among Saudi Arabia, Nato member Turkey and nuclear power Pakistan.
But officials from Turkey and Pakistan said they have not received a Saudi request for support in response to the Houthis’ escalation. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly on the issue.
Amid the condemnation of the attempted attack on Mecca, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said his country and the Saudis stand “unwaveringly, shoulder to shoulder”.
Turkey’s foreign minister expressed solidarity and said no country can “remain indifferent”, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.
The United States has sold billions of dollars in weapons to Saudi Arabia and has committed to other support, but top US officials have indicated a lack of desire to get involved in the conflict.
US Vice-President J.D. Vance on Monday said Washington had been in “constant contact” with the Saudis and had “engaged in direct conversations with the Houthis”.

When asked whether Saudi Arabia had requested intervention, a US official said the US military’s Central Command has a task force in place for “enhancing intelligence sharing and planning support with Saudi forces”.
The US military hosted senior military leaders from eight countries last week at a conference in Germany to discuss “opportunities for enhancing security cooperation in the Middle East”, the official also said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to comment publicly.
The official did not confirm which countries attended.
The Houthis claimed on Wednesday that they shot down an F-15 fighter jet operated by the Saudi-backed coalition over Yemen’s central province of Marib, releasing a video of wreckage.
In a video posted on social media, the burning wreckage of an aircraft could be seen in the desert and fighters posed with a part of the plane that appeared to show a Saudi flag.
Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse


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Saudis turn to Western, regional allies as missile defences run low

Houthi fighters pose atop what the group described as the wreckage of a downed Saudi F-15 fighter jet in Marib province, Yemen, in an image released on Wednesday. Photo: Ansar Allah Media Office via AP

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Burning military vehicles during fighting in al-Jawf governate, Yemen. Photo: Ansarullah Media Centre via AFP

Mecca, Saudi Arabia, is home to some of the holiest sites in Islam and the focal point of the annual haj pilgrimage. Photo: Reuters

Houthi fighters next to a captured military vehicle in Yemen. Photo: Houthi Military Media via Reuters

Mocha International Airport after the Houthis took control of key cities along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait last week. Photo: Al-Masirah TV via AFP

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Regional officials say kingdom appeals to France, UK, Pakistan, and Egypt for help against Houthis amid US interceptor shortages


Regional officials say kingdom appeals to France, UK, Pakistan, and Egypt for help against Houthis amid US interceptor shortages.


Saudis turn to Western, regional allies as missile defences run low

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Regional officials say kingdom appeals to France, UK, Pakistan, and Egypt for help against Houthis amid US interceptor shortages

Regional officials say kingdom appeals to France, UK, Pakistan, and Egypt for help against Houthis amid US interceptor shortages