Officers of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are on the ground in Yemen directing Houthi operations. They are also feeding the group the targeting intelligence behind many of its missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday. Danny Citrinowicz, a former head of the Iran branch of Israeli defense intelligence, called the link "very, very strong on the operational level." The report came a day after US President Donald Trump said Israel "has been very helpful to Saudi Arabia" in its fight against the Houthis.
Trump made the remark to reporters at the White House on Friday and offered no details of what Israel had provided, as JFeed reported. Asked whether Riyadh should take up Israel's offer of help against the Houthis, he replied: "Yeah, I do. I think they will."
The IRGC officers in Yemen are helping the Houthis take territory along the Bab al-Mandeb coastline. Iran is also arming and training the group, and it provides targeting assistance for its drone and missile attacks on the kingdom.
Citrinowicz cast the partnership as a meeting of interests rather than simple patronage.
"Iran has a major interest in the Houthis' success. It harms Saudi Arabia; it raises the oil prices. Therefore, there is a shared strategic interest that isn't based on a client-patron relationship, but rather on strategic cooperation."
The Houthis have stepped up their attacks. On Thursday, the group fired ballistic missiles at the Al-Ma'ashiq presidential palace in Aden, where Yemen's Saudi-backed government is based. Yemen's government-aligned official news agency said the strike killed two security guards and wounded six others, as JFeed reported.
