Tel Aviv: Drone, rocket and missile attacks of Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen on Saudi Arabia are on the rise. To repel the attacks, Israel should provide Saudi Arabia with the Iron Dome missile defence system, suggested Joel Guzansky, an analyst at a leading Israeli think tank. US President Joe Biden has stopped selling arms to Saudi Arabia. Under such circumstances, Israel should provide military assistance to Saudi Arabia, both of which have found a common enemy in Iran, according to Guzansky.  

Civil war has erupted in Yemen since 2015, with Houthi rebels overthrowing President Saleh. Simultaneously, the Houthis have continued to attack Saudi Arabia, which supported Saleh’s rule. Iran is accused of testing its drones and missiles through Houthi rebels. The Houthis are claimed to have launched more than 860 drones and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia for over five years, including ballistic missiles.  

Some of the ballistic missiles had reached as far as the Saudi capital, Riyadh. Nevertheless, with the help of the US-deployed Patriot missile defence system, the Saudis successfully repelled the Houthi ballistic missile attacks. Joel Guzansky warned that the ballistic missiles fired by Houthis, which hit the Saudi capital and the energy sector, posed an equal threat not only to Saudi or Arab countries but also to Israel’s security.  

Guzansky is a Senior Research Fellow at an Israeli think tank called the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) and specialises in Gulf politics and security. In an Israeli newspaper article, Guzansky advised providing the Saudis with the Israeli Iron Dome missile defence system. Israel has developed the capacity for interception of short, medium or long-range rockets and missiles. Guzansky, therefore, suggested that Israel should provide the system to Saudi Arabia to help curb attacks by Iran and Iran-linked terrorist groups.  

Saudi Arabia has been buying large quantities of arms over the past few years. Yet, the Saudi regime’s self-defence capabilities are limited, Guzansky noted. The United States has provided Saudi with the Patriot missile defence batteries, and in the next two years, the advanced THAAD air defence system could enter the Saudi defence force. Guzansky, however, also drew attention to the fact that the Biden administration had decided a few weeks ago to suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia. Besides, the Biden administration has made a similar decision for the UAE.  

In the wake of the recent events, a few reports stated that Saudi Arabia and the UAE were thereby keen to buy Israel’s Iron Dome system. Meanwhile, Israeli media had claimed a few days ago that Israel was preparing to open an independent military alliance with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain. Also, UAE companies had invested in Israeli weapons manufacturing companies, according to some reports. 

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