On Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that what’s left of Iran may be flying Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fighters into Yemen, presumably to assist the Houthi rebels in attempting to close the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Iran on Wednesday of flying members of its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps into Yemen, saying Tehran’s actions helped ignite a renewed confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
“They decided to send direct flights from Tehran into Yemen, carrying IRGC elements and others into the country,” Rubio told reporters. “And the Saudis responded to it.”
Rubio did not identify the flights, specify how many IRGC personnel were allegedly transported or provide evidence supporting the allegation.
It is perhaps belaboring the obvious to note that the secretary, even if he had precise data on the flights and numbers of personnel, would not reveal that to the media; for one thing, revealing that information could compromise any assets we have who provided that information.
This wouldn’t be a surprising move for Iran. They have been threatening to have their Houthi allies close the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, to close yet another shipping bottleneck. The problem is Saudi Arabia, which sends a lot of shipping through this area, and the Saudis have considerable military power themselves. If Iran is sending IRGC fighters to Yemen, this may be the spark to ignite a larger conflict.
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Secretary Rubio continued:
“Anything that restricts shipping through the Red Sea would be problematic for the same reasons that the Strait of Hormuz is problematic,” Rubio said. “So we’re watching that closely.”
Saudi Arabia’s military has vowed to keep Bab el-Mandeb open and respond firmly to Houthi threats against commercial vessels using the waterway.
By “respond firmly,” we can safely assume the Saudis mean responding militarily. This, they can do; according to the 2026 Global Firepower rankings, the Saudi military is the fifth most powerful in the region, after Turkey at #1, Israel at #2, Iran at #3, and Egypt at #4. These numbers, mind, are likely before Iran started getting its teeth kicked in by the United States and Israel.
Any possible escalation that brings Saudi Arabia directly into the fight may be far more serious for Iran than they seem to think it would be; and Iran has already launched some attacks against the Saudis. There is, furthermore, a long history of simmering antagonism between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran.
Read More: New: Iran Now Calling on Houthis to Block Red Sea Gateway
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Houthis Enter the Chat. Yemen Proclaims ‘Embargo’ of Red Sea Shipping From Saudi Arabia
If there are any IRGC troops in Yemen or bound for Yemen, they are likely there for training and support purposes; it seems unlikely, given current events, that Iran would send over any significant numbers of their fighting forces that have not yet been rendered inert by American explosives. This is nothing new for Iran; Iran has been training, equipping, and supporting the Houthis for some time now, just as they have Hamas, Hezbollah, and any number of other Islamic terror groups and militias.
Editor’s Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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