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Second Houthi Missile Fired at Riyadh: Saudis Stuck in the Middle?

Posted: December 21st, 2017

A missile fired by Yemen’s Iranian-supported Houthi rebels and targeting the Saudi capital Riyadh for the second time in seven weeks suggests such an attack won’t be a one-off. While the Saudis again say they were able to intercept the rocket, this might mark the beginnings of a pattern that thrusts the Kingdom into the center of a proxy war between Washington and Tehran.

The technological makeup of the Burkan H2 missile, the same kind used in the Nov. 4 attack, leaves little doubt about its Iranian origin, as Yemen doesn’t have such manufacturing capabilities. And despite decades of experience in guerrilla warfare, it is unlikely that the Houthis have been able to acquire the necessary military training and expertise to use such strategic weapons on their own. Instead, they most likely acquired their know-how from Iranian military advisors on the ground in Yemen.

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