Attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia undermine regional security: MEA

Attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia are unacceptable to India, as they undermine regional security and imperil freedom of navigation in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the external affairs ministry said on Friday.

Reiterating India’s condemnation of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia’s economic facilities and the attempted strike on the holy city of Makkah, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a regular media briefing that New Delhi is “deeply concerned” about the escalation in the security situation in the Red Sea.

“We have expressed our condemnation of the attacks on Saudi sovereign territory, including on civilians and economic assets. You would have also seen our statement which we issued following the attempted attack on the holy city of Makkah,” he said while responding to questions on the matter.

“Such attacks, I need not elaborate or reiterate, vitiate regional security, undermine regional peace and security and also threaten freedom of navigation in the Bab el-Mandeb,” he said. “Obviously for various reasons, this is totally unacceptable to us. We hope that there is early restoration of peace and stability in the region.”

Jaiswal said all Indian nationals currently in Yemen are safe, and the Indian embassy in Saudi Arabia is in contact with them to ensure their welfare.

The drone attack targeting Makkah is being seen as a major escalation in renewed hostilities between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, who have taken control of key territories close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in recent days.

The importance of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait for energy supplies has grown for India following Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz. India has repeatedly opposed attacks on merchant shipping and civilian infrastructure amid the West Asia conflict and said strikes on Saudi Arabia’s economic infrastructure by the Houthis undermine regional stability.

The issue of Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia figured in a meeting between external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, on the margins of the Brics Summit on September 13.