Syria Denies Sending Troops to Yemen to Fight Houthis
Yemeni officials told AFP Syria will send about 3,000 troops against the Houthis. Damascus told SANA on Nov. 7 that reports of troops sent are “entirely unfounded.”
Featured photo: the Riyadh skyline, Saudi Arabia (file photo). Photo: B.alotaby, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
DUBAI — Syria will send about 3,000 troops to join the Saudi-led coalition against Yemen’s Houthis, with hundreds already deployed on both sides of the Saudi-Yemeni border, Yemeni officials told AFP, The Times of Israel reported. The officials spoke anonymously; the claim is unconfirmed.
Damascus denied it. A Syrian diplomatic source told the state news agency SANA that reports Syria had sent troops “at this time are entirely unfounded” and that Syria has no plans to send troops to Yemen, Reuters reported on Nov. 7.
Conflicting accounts
The Yemeni sources told AFP the arrangement was approved during Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s visit to Riyadh this week, and that Syrians on the Yemeni side of the border are leading drone operations against the Houthis.
Reuters reported on Nov. 6, citing two Syrian military sources and a senior U.S. official, that Syria had sent a limited number of military personnel to Saudi Arabia to give advice and training. The two Syrian sources said scores had gone in recent weeks and that their mandate could be broader, The Times of Israel reported.
The defense deal
Syria and Saudi Arabia signed a defense cooperation agreement on Nov. 4 during al-Sharaa’s second meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in less than a month, Reuters said. A senior Syrian diplomat called it “a broad framework for military cooperation.”
The SANA source said Saudi coordination visits to Syria begin next month and that ties could grow into a mutual defense agreement or Syria joining the Mecca Pact, Reuters reported. Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey signed that pact in August, and Turkey ratified it on Nov. 5.
What to watch
Assessment: The only point all sides agree on is a training role inside Saudi Arabia. Syrian combat troops in Yemen would be a major shift for the post-Assad government, so watch for Saudi or Yemeni government confirmation, or casualties that would be hard to deny.
Sources
- The Times of Israel (AFP): Damascus denies report Syria sending troops to Yemen and Saudi Arabia to fight Houthis
- Reuters via Yahoo News: Syria denies plans to send troops to Yemen as Saudi military ties deepen
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