Reports: Saudi Arabia asks Washington, London, Paris for help after Houthi gains

The latest:

Saudi Arabia has asked the United States, Britain and France for help responding to the Houthi offensive in Yemen, the French investigative outlet Intelligence Online reported Tuesday. The publication said Riyadh is also recruiting foreign fighters once more and delivering weapons to Yemen’s internationally recognised government. The requests follow the loss of Saudi-backed positions on the Red Sea coast.

Details:

• The setback: Reuters reported that Houthi forces captured territory overlooking the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and islands near its entrance. Divisions among the opposing Yemeni factions contributed to the collapse of their positions. Holding ground near the strait is not the same as controlling all traffic passing through it.
• The Western answer: Western officials told Reuters that neither the United States nor European countries were prepared to provide direct military support for a counteroffensive. That leaves Riyadh’s requests to Washington, London and Paris without a committed military response, and pushes Saudi planning toward indirect options on the ground.
• The recruitment: Intelligence Online reported that Riyadh has resumed recruiting foreign fighters. An Arabic account attributed to the same report says Saudi contacts are exploring recruitment from Colombia and neighbouring countries, possibly alongside former Syrian fighters. Those added specifics have not been matched to the subscriber-only original.
• The capabilities sought: The Arabic account says Riyadh has asked several partners for air defence, counter-drone and air-support capabilities — the categories most directly relevant to Houthi missile and drone attacks. The account does not name which partners received which requests.
• The arms flow: Intelligence Online reported deliveries of weapons to Yemen’s internationally recognised government. The Arabic account goes further, describing shipments of Chinese-made reconnaissance and attack drones to government forces. That detail is attributed to the account rather than to the original publication.
• The Trump claim: The Arabic account alleges that President Donald Trump withheld direct help to push Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman toward requesting formal Israeli assistance. This is a claim about motive, carried by a secondary account, and is not established as fact.
• The Israel claim: The same account asserts that Israeli intelligence was already reaching Saudi personnel through a U.S. Central Command facility. A claim of covert intelligence cooperation of this weight stands on the account alone, without the original passage or separate corroboration.
• The stakes: Bab el-Mandeb is the southern gateway to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal route. Houthi positions overlooking the strait and islands near its entrance place armed forces alongside one of the world’s most heavily used shipping corridors.

Background:

The Houthis have fought a Saudi-led coalition and Yemen’s internationally recognised government for years. Riyadh previously recruited foreign fighters for the conflict, a practice Intelligence Online reported it has now resumed.

Between the lines:

Two things reported here point the same way. Riyadh asked three Western capitals for help and was told no direct military support was coming; it is simultaneously recruiting foreign fighters and delivering arms to Yemeni government forces. Together those suggest Saudi Arabia is building an indirect response because the direct one was refused. The Trump and Israeli intelligence claims, if borne out, would reframe that refusal as leverage rather than reluctance.

What’s next

Watch whether Washington, London or Paris respond publicly to the Saudi requests, whether Houthi forces expand from the coastal positions they now hold, and whether Intelligence Online’s original report is corroborated on the Colombian recruitment and Israeli intelligence claims.