Britain: We support the Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia in confronting the Houthis

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British Minister for the Middle East, Stephen Doughty, confirmed that his country will face the threat from Iran directly or through its agents such as the Houthis, Hezbollah, and Iraqi militias.

He also stressed in statements on Tuesday that London stands with the recognized Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia in confronting the Houthis.

Doughty considered that "what is happening in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Gate is a threat to the principles of international freedom of navigation."

In addition, he said: "We take Houthi threats to the region very seriously, and we also take Iran's threats to national interests seriously."

He also added that "Tehran's direct and indirect aggressive practices through its agents constitute a threat to the United Kingdom and its allies." He continued: “We imposed sanctions on two members of the Revolutionary Guard for their role in threatening the United Kingdom

He confirmed that he summoned the Iranian ambassador yesterday and informed him of the rejection of Iran’s threats to Britain and its allies.

He also considered that “recent events have proven that the Iranian threat is not theoretical

As for the Fairford base incident, he pointed out that the Prime Minister made it clear that it was very likely that the Revolutionary Guards were involved in the attack.

The British domestic intelligence service MI5 warned that the country was entering a new phase of security threats. He revealed that more than fifty people were arrested within a year in operations linked to Tehran.

He also accused the Revolutionary Guard of being behind attacks targeting Jewish institutions, and warned of the expansion of the Iranian threat to include military installations.

This came amid escalating tension between London and Tehran against the backdrop of the investigation into an incident near Fairford Air Base, in which London accused Tehran of involvement, while the latter denied responsibility.

It also came with the attempts of the Houthi militias to target civilian facilities in Saudi Arabia, after the attack last week on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, which resulted in the killing of 13 people.