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Saudi Arabia's recent monthslong efforts to recruit military personnel from abroad for Yemen did not result in an organized deployment of Syrian forces, as sources clarify that Damascus turned down a formal request from Riyadh to organize and dispatch fighters.
Syrian sources who spoke to Türkiye Today said Saudi Arabia had in recent months sought fighters to meet its military needs in Yemen, but that the Syrian government had "politely" rejected a request to organize and deploy a Syrian force against the Houthis.
"This issue has been exhausted and is over. The Saudi request was made several months ago. Syria politely turned it down, saying it was focused on its own military organization process and did not intend to enter a conflict as a third party," one of the sources said.
The source said the Syrian government was not preventing individuals from traveling outside Syria to participate in the conflict, but stressed that Damascus would not accept responsibility for such individual involvement.
Claims that Türkiye had played a role in transporting or organizing Syrians for deployment to Yemen were also rejected by Turkish sources. "We have no involvement in this matter. Syria and Saudi Arabia are sovereign countries," the Turkish sources said.
They added that Türkiye would determine what steps it would take under the Mecca pact once the agreement had established a legal basis within the participating countries.
Regional sources familiar with developments in Yemen also denied the reports of an organized deployment, saying there was no Turkish-run program to transfer Syrians to Yemen.
Reports that Syrian fighters had traveled to Yemen as part of teams operating alongside Turkish personnel were "completely untrue," regional sources said.
Saudi Arabia is continuing to explore options for recruiting military personnel and instructors from different countries as it seeks to address its military needs in Yemen, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The search comes as fighting has intensified in Yemen and Iran-backed Houthi forces have taken control of key positions along the Red Sea coastline and near the entrance to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the sources said.
The sources said Saudi Arabia had been looking at personnel from several countries, with Pakistan among the countries where the recruitment effort had gained traction.
Unconfirmed reports also suggest that Saudi security authorities are continuing to look for personnel in North African countries, including Egypt and Libya.
The developments have also brought renewed attention to the Mecca pact, under which Türkiye, Pakistan and other participating countries are expected to coordinate on security and defense issues.
Sources familiar with the discussions said active defense cooperation could be considered once the pact has been incorporated into the domestic legal mechanisms of the participating countries.
All the sources agreed that Türkiye and Pakistan were expected to focus on defensive missions rather than taking direct ground action against the Houthis in Yemen, Türkiye Today understands.
The focus would instead be on protecting energy infrastructure, strategic facilities and important population and administrative centers, the sources said.
The fighting has intensified along Yemen’s western coast over the past week, with the Houthis taking control of strategic districts in Hodeidah and Taiz provinces, including Mokha, as well as Red Sea islands, including Mayyun in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Government forces, meanwhile, have advanced in al-Jawf province toward its capital al-Hazm, while clashes continue in Marib, al-Dhale and al-Bayda.
The escalation, which began in July, is the broadest since the relative calm that followed the April 2022 truce, with fighting intensifying this month, particularly along the western coast and around Bab el-Mandeb.
Yemen has been engulfed in conflict since the Houthis seized Sanaa and several provinces in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.
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