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| Volume 56 Number 31, October 24, 2026 | ARCHIVE | HOME | JBCENTRE | SUBSCRIBE |
A Typhoon fighter jet takes off from the UK's RAF Akrotiri air base in Cyprus in early March 2026
On October 20, Press TV reported that Britain is set to deploy RAF Typhoon fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, deepening its military involvement in Riyadh's war against Yemen and a further escalation of Britain's warmongering in the name of "defence".
According to the report, the Ministry of Defence said that the operation would involve RAF Typhoons flying "defensive missions to protect Saudi cities, airports and critical infrastructure" from retaliatory attacks by the Yemeni armed forces. The number of aircraft involved has not been disclosed.
The deployment will be accompanied by military advisers and an Atlas A400M transport aircraft, while an existing commitment to provide air-to-air refuelling support for Saudi warplanes through an RAF Voyager aircraft will continue.
The decision follows discussions between Defence Secretary Wes Streeting and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon to join the Saudi aggression against Yemen.
The move comes amid Britain's longstanding military partnership with Saudi Arabia. BAE Systems has supplied Riyadh with 72 Eurofighter Typhoon jets under a deal originally valued at £4.4 billion, while negotiations over a potential additional purchase of 48 aircraft have continued for years.
In a recent statement, the Yemeni Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates denounced Saudi strikes on civilians and non-military installations as a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and Additional Protocol I of 1977.
The latest escalation began after Saudi Arabia bombed Sana'a's international airport in July. The Yemeni armed forces responded by enforcing a "blockade for blockade" policy and declaring an embargo on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea.
The Yemeni military has announced several successful naval operations targeting ships linked to Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea, enforcing the blockade and impacting Riyadh's energy exports.
Yemeni forces have also launched retaliatory attacks on targets deep inside Saudi Arabia and made a rapid advance across Yemen's coastal plain over the past month, tightening their grip on the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
The origin of the war dates back to March 2015, when Saudi Arabia and a US-backed coalition launched a sweeping military campaign and blockade aimed at reinstalling a puppet regime in Sana'a.
Despite years of bombardment and the deployment of advanced Western weaponry, the Saudi coalition has failed to achieve its stated objectives, the Press TV report concludes.