An Italian Eurofighter F-2000 was hit in the Ta’if air base (also known as King Fahad base) in Saudi Arabia, where tension has been increasingly high in recent days due to the advance of the Houthis (the Yemeni armed rebel group) in the region and the potential blockade of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. At the moment, however, the rebel militia has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, confirmed that there were no Italian soldiers involved: the aircraft was in fact located within a decentralized area of the base. At the same time, there is no other damage to vehicles or infrastructures used by Italian personnel.
It must immediately be said that this air base is part of the territory of Saudi Arabia: the event, therefore, does not mean an attack against Italy nor does it imply a direct involvement of our country in the conflict. But where is this air base located and why do Italian soldiers also operate inside it?
The Ta’if air base is located in the western part of Saudi Arabia, about 70 km from Mecca and about 780 km from the capital Riyadh. Among other things, on 17 September Saudi Arabia accused the Houthis of having launched a drone towards Mecca (the most important sacred city for the Muslim religion), which was then intercepted by the Saudi army and destroyed. It cannot therefore be ruled out that the attack on the base is part of this escalation, even if at the moment there is no official confirmation on the specific target.
The Yemeni rebels denied the attack against Mecca immediately, instead claiming attacks against other Saudi military facilities, such as the King Khalid air base, and energy infrastructure, such as the East-West oil pipeline, crucial for Riyadh to export oil. Just last night, the Houthis struck the Yanbu oil terminal, on the Red Sea, where the pipeline that brings Saudi oil from the fields in the east of the country to the Red Sea arrives.
From an organizational point of view, the military air base of Ta’if it is operated by the Royal Saudi Air Force. More specifically, Ta’if is part of the Western Air Defense Sector, part of the Saudi Ministry of Defense. The structure consists of 2 runways, the longest of which is 3,735 metres, and hosts the 2nd Wing, the 3rd Squadron, the 10th Squadron, the 80th Squadron and 8 other units, which use Typhoon and F-15 Eagle aircraft.
Inside, a US advisory detachment (USMTM) also operates, whose commander supports local leaders and flies as an F-15C instructor in the 5th Squadron of the Royal Saudi Air Force. Unlike other countries, in fact, in Saudi Arabia the USA does not have military bases for exclusive use, but collaborates with Riyadh within local army outposts.
As reported by Minister Crosetto, the Italian personnel were at the air base because they were engaged in the Inherent Resolve operation: since 2014, in fact, our country has been part of the international coalition that operates against DAESH terrorists in Iraq and Syria.
According to rumors, the Ta’if/King Fahad air base would constitute the main operational headquarters of the four Italian Eurofighter F-2000A deployed in the region, but the Italian Ministry of Defense has not publicly confirmed this information. In any case, as the Ministry of Defense specifies that the objectives of the Inherent Resolve operation include:
- Contribute to Coalition staff;
- Carry out air-to-air refueling activities for the Coalition’s air assets;
- Reconnaissance and surveillance with remote-controlled aircraft and aircraft;
- Training of Kurdish and Iraqi Security Forces.
