Iranian military support said to fuel Houthi territorial gains, attacks on Saudi Arabia

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Supporters of the Houthi authorities brandish their weapons during a protest against Saudi intervention in Yemen, in Sanaa, on October 9, 2026. (Mohammed HUWAIS/AFP)

Iran has stepped up its military assistance to Yemen’s Houthi rebels, helping the group carry out increasingly sophisticated attacks on Saudi Arabia and its Yemeni allies, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with Saudi and Yemeni intelligence.

According to the report, Tehran has provided intelligence, training, tactical advice and assistance in targeting missile and drone strikes, helping the Houthis make rapid territorial gains.

The Iran-backed group now controls Yemen’s coastline along the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a key passage for Saudi oil shipments, and has targeted Saudi tankers, energy infrastructure and airports. A strike on Riyadh’s international airport last weekend killed at least 13 people.

The growing cooperation underscores Iran’s ability to pressure Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states through terror proxies as the United States seeks to end the war with the Islamic Republic.

“The connection is very, very strong on the operational level,” Danny Citrinowicz, the IDF’s former top Iran researcher, tells the Journal, describing the relationship as one of “shared strategic interest that isn’t based on a client-patron relationship, but rather on strategic cooperation.”

Iran has supported the Houthis in its conflict against Saudi Arabia for years, supplying weapons and deploying Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Hezbollah operatives to train the group in producing and operating missiles and drones.