Saudi Arabia setting up military equipment by Yemen border

Saudi Arabia is sending equipment to its Yemen border. — (Image credit: Twitter.com/BusinessInsider)

U.S. officials say that Saudi Arabia has moved heavy military equipment to areas near its border with Yemen, as Houthi rebels move closer to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi in the southern city of Aden.

One source told Reuters that the significant buildup of equipment and artillery appears to be defensive, while another said that Saudi Arabia could be getting ready to use airstrikes to defend Hadi if the Houthi militants attack Aden. "The Saudis are just really deeply concerned about what they see as an Iranian stronghold in a failed state along the border," U.S. Ambassador to Yemen Matthew Tueller told Reuters. On Monday, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said that Arab countries will do what they have to in order to protect the region from Houthi "aggression," if the warring factions cannot reach a peaceful solution.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.