Britain to deploy RAF fighter jets to defend Saudi cities

LONDON — Britain will deploy Royal Air Force ​Typhoon fighter jets on defensive missions to help protect ‌Saudi cities and critical national infrastructure from escalating Houthi aerial attacks, the UK government said on Tuesday.It said the aircraft would operate ​only in a defensive role and would not conduct ​offensive strikes against the Iran-aligned Houthis, whose attacks threaten regional stability and risk disrupting energy supplies ​and trade routes.Prime Minister Andy Burnham authorized the mission following Houthi attacks on the Saudi capital Riyadh, as well as on energy sites on the country’s coast.”These aircraft will operate in a defensive role and will not conduct offensive strikes against the Houthis,” Defense Secretary Wes Streeting said in a written statement on Tuesday.The Houthis are locked in a civil war with Yemen’s internationally recognized government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia.The group said they were behind two strikes on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on 10 and 11 October, the first killing 13 people and injuring 308 others.The UK will also deploy military advisers and an RAF A400M transport aircraft.It is already providing Saudi Arabia with defense support equipment to protect against aerial attacks and air-to-air refuelling for defensive Saudi operations. The refuelling has now been extended by 90 days.In a separate statement, Streeting said the targeting of Riyadh airport “shows the lengths the Houthis are going to escalate the situation in the region”.”That’s why today I have approved further UK military support,” the defense secretary added.Streeting also pointed to violence in the Gulf disrupting energy supplies and increasing costs and driving up the costs for families and businesses.