Iranian arms and advice helped Yemen's Houthis seize key Red Sea city, sources say

The lightning Houthi advance down Yemen's Red Sea coast this week came with direct guidance from Iran's Revolutionary Guards seeking to open a new front in US-Israeli war on Iran, according to Yemeni government, Iranian and regional sources.

Iran told the Houthis last week to escalate their attacks on Saudi Arabia, a close US ally, and promised more funding, weapons and senior officers to help them do so, two Iranian sources said.

Several senior Revolutionary Guards commanders had already travelled to Yemen to oversee and command Houthi attacks directed against Saudi Arabia after weeks of discussions over military strategy, a regional diplomat briefed by Tehran said.

A third Iranian source, an official, said Iran had held several meetings with allies including the Houthis and that the move on Mocha was a Houthi rather than Iranian decision. However, it had helped Iran by putting upward pressure on oil prices and hurting the United States and Saudi Arabia, the official added.

Reporting by Reuters