The United States has reportedly deployed more than 100 military advisors to Saudi Arabia to provide intelligence and battlefield support to Riyadh as it escalates its military aggression against Yemen's Ansar Allah.

CNN reported Thursday, citing sources, that the US personnel are providing Saudi Arabia with intelligence support, including geospatial data and access to real-time battlefield tracking systems. The total number of US troops deployed to the kingdom could eventually reach 200, according to the report.

The reported deployment would deepen Washington's involvement alongside Saudi Arabia in the renewed war against Yemen, despite claims that US forces are not directly participating in airstrikes or refueling Saudi warplanes.

US support bolsters Saudi military aggression

The US Department of War is reportedly limiting its role to intelligence sharing and battlefield support, CNN said. However, the deployment comes as Saudi Arabia carries out airstrikes across Yemen while Saudi-backed forces engage Ansar Allah on several fronts.

The renewed US role follows years of Washington's support for Saudi Arabia's war on Yemen, which began with the Saudi-led military intervention in 2015 and contributed to one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

Human rights organizations have documented extensive civilian casualties during the war. More recently, a Pentagon review found that US airstrikes on Yemen in 2025 killed at least 153 civilians and wounded 243 others, underscoring the human cost of Washington's military aggression.

Deployment comes amid renewed fighting

The latest escalation follows renewed clashes between Saudi Arabia and Ansar Allah after a Saudi attack on Sanaa airport in July. Yemeni Armed Forces announced retaliatory operations against Saudi targets after the aggression, including Abha Airport.

Saudi Arabia subsequently resumed attacks on areas on Yemen's coast, while Saudi-backed forces intensified military operations on the ground.

The YAF has said its current operations are aimed at confronting Saudi aggression and defending Yemeni sovereignty, while Yemeni officials have stressed that military operations along the western coast do not threaten international maritime navigation.

The reported deployment of US advisors could therefore mark a new phase of direct US support for Saudi Arabia as the kingdom seeks to counter recent Yemeni advances along the Red Sea coast. Ansar Allah's gains have increased pressure on Saudi-backed forces and raised the stakes of Washington's involvement in the war.

The move comes against the backdrop of a long US-Saudi military aggression in Yemen, with Washington once again providing Saudi Arabia with capabilities that could strengthen its war effort while the country remains scarred by years of foreign intervention and devastating civilian losses.

Recent Saudi aggression 

Yesterday, 43 airstrikes hit several Yemeni provinces, including Marib, al-Jawf, Taiz, and Hodeidah, Al Mayadeen’s bureau chief in Yemen reported. He said the strikes were aimed at supporting and reinforcing Saudi military mobilizations on the ground.

In response, the Yemeni forces targeted several Saudi economic facilities, including oil refineries operated by Aramco and Abha Airport. They also imposed a maritime ban on vessels arriving in or departing from Saudi Arabia, as part of the “airport for airport and siege for siege” equation.

On Tuesday, YAF repelled Saudi troops deployed to Souq al-Yatama in the Khab wa ash-Sha'af district of the al-Jawf province, a field source told Sanaa's official Yemen TV.

More context: Latest Yemeni advances

Yemeni Armed Forces have made significant advances along Yemen’s western coast, taking control of key areas and military positions in al-Mokha district, west of Taizz, according to an Al Mayadeen correspondent.

The advances include the capture of Khalid Camp and Jabal al-Nar Camp, the command headquarters for forces operating along the western coast. Yemeni forces also captured al-Wazi'iyah, al-Khokha, and Hays, before reaching the outskirts of al-Mokha.

Al-Khokha and Hays together cover more than 1,050 square kilometers, according to local sources cited by Al Mayadeen. The advances come amid renewed fighting with Saudi-backed forces and Saudi airstrikes across several Yemeni provinces.

Read more: Ansar Allah: Yemen coast battle internal, not threat to sea navigation