Syriaupdated 2h ago2 min read
Syria Denies Joining Yemen War, Says It Stands With Saudi Arabia Against Houthis
Syria denies joining Yemen war and reiterates support for Saudi Arabia. Damascus says regional policy aims at stability, peace, cooperation; no new fronts.
16 outlets told this the same way.
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Damascus rejects Yemen role
Syria’s Ministry of Information said Damascus policy in the region is based on stability, peace, and cooperation, not on opening new fronts, and it stressed that Damascus stands firmly with Saudi Arabia against threats targeting its security and stability. Ahmed Muwafaq Zidan, the Syrian Presidency’s Media Advisor, denied circulating reports about a supposed request for Syrian intervention in Yemen, calling the claims “a lie and false.”
Syria’s state-run Alikhbariah TV also carried a denial that Syria was joining the war in Yemen, with the Syrian Information Ministry’s Foreign Media Directorate saying, “We stand firmly alongside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in confronting threats targeting its security and stability.” Syria’s denials came as Reuters quoted an American official and a Syrian military official saying Syria is seriously considering offering military assistance to Saudi Arabia amid the escalating war against the Houthis in Yemen.
What assistance is discussed
Reuters said the options under study include providing defensive aid to protect the kingdom from attacks or deploying troops on offensive missions to assist Yemen-based forces supported by Saudi Arabia in fighting the Houthis. A Syrian diplomat told Reuters that any military cooperation or exchange of expertise would be done “exclusively through official channels and within the framework of the bilateral agreements governing relations between our two brotherly countries.”
Axios also quoted American officials saying Saudi Arabia and Syria are discussing sending Syrian troops to Yemen to join the assault against the Houthis, and that President Ahmad al-Shara is seriously studying the matter but has not yet made a final decision. Syria’s official messaging framed the issue as internal priority and reconstruction, with the BBC reporting that a Syrian diplomat said Syria’s primary focus remains on internal priorities such as recovering from the civil war.
Security stakes and next steps
Syria’s official line tied Gulf security to Syria’s own security, with Zidan confirming that “Damascus stands with its people in the two holy cities with all its strength and resolve.” The Reuters-linked reporting described risks of a direct Syrian confrontation with the Houthis, including concerns that it could stir sensitivities with critical sectarian dimensions while Syria tries to manage tensions among its own religious and ethnic communities.
“Damascus stands with its people in the two holy cities with all its strength and resolve.”
The same Reuters-linked reporting said the head of the transitional period in Syria, Ahmad al-Shara, paid an announced visit to Riyadh last Tuesday where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Syria’s official media showed him being seen off at his plane by Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman. The Al-Jazeera Net account also placed the diplomatic dispute alongside attacks in Saudi Arabia, with the General Authority of Saudi Civil Aviation announcing that Abha and King Khaled International Airports were targeted by two attacks affecting their facilities, including an attack on Abha Airport that resulted in two residents killed and 28 people wounded.