Iran flew IRGC commanders, missile gear to Yemen’s Houthis

Iran flew Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders, military advisers and missile- and drone-related equipment into Yemen this month, according to four sources, in a move that suggests Tehran is ​seeking to strengthen the ability of its Houthi allies to threaten Red Sea shipping.
Four sources familiar with the matter, including two Iranian sources, Yemen’s information minister and a regional security analyst, said Iran transferred the IRGC personnel and military-related equipment on a flight from Tehran to Yemen on July 13, a development that has not been previously reported.
The two Iranian sources told Reuters that between 10 and 21 IRGC personnel, including senior commanders, were on the Mahan Air flight.
The plane was originally bound for the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa, but diverted to the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah after the airport came under attack by the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
“The IRGC commanders traveled there to support Houthi operations and provide training on new missile systems,” one of the sources said, adding that Iran ‌also sent gold ‌on the aircraft to fund Houthi activities.
The two Iranian sources spoke on condition of ​anonymity because ‌of ⁠security concerns.
The ​deployment ⁠offers fresh evidence of Iran’s efforts to bolster the Houthis, who have been in a civil war against the Yemeni government for more than a decade and have attacked Gulf neighbors with missiles and drones.
Iran’s foreign ministry was not immediately available to comment. Tehran has repeatedly denied providing the Houthi movement in Yemen with missile capabilities.
There was no immediate response to requests for comment sent to two Houthi officials. The group has previously denied being an Iranian proxy and has said it develops its own weapons.
Three days after the flight arrived in Yemen, Reuters reported that Tehran had asked the Houthi movement to stand ready to close ⁠the Red Sea oil route if the US struck Iranian power infrastructure, posing a new ‌threat to global energy supplies.
On Monday, the group, whose area of control in ‌Yemen overlooks the waterway, announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia.
Their ‌threat to one of the world’s top maritime trade routes escalated further on Thursday when the group said it had attacked Saudi oil tankers.
Moammar Al-Iryani, information minister in Yemen’s Saudi-backed government, confirmed the transfers of Guards personnel and equipment in a telephone interview with Reuters on Wednesday, citing intelligence.
“Their mission is to strengthen the militias’ military capabilities and prepare them to threaten international maritime security in the Red Sea and the Bab El-Mandeb ‌strait,” he said.
Mzahem Alsaloum, a security and intelligence analyst who has tracked the Houthis and other Iranian-backed groups for years, also confirmed the IRGC experts’ arrival on the July 13 ⁠flight.