UK to provide Saudi Arabia with 'defensive' military support, says Burnham

Andy Burnham has said the UK will provide "defensive air-to-air refuelling" support for Saudi Arabia, in response to attacks the country has faced from the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.

It is understood this is likely to begin in the coming days and will involve a single British aircraft, a Voyager, based out of RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus.

The prime minister said it follows a request from Saudi Arabia for "military support", which he agreed to on the advice of Defence Secretary Wes Streeting and Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband.

Government officials said the offer is "time limited" and likely, in the first instance, to last "for weeks".

The Houthis are locked in a civil war with Yemen's internationally recognised government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia.

In recent days, the Houthis in Yemen say they have carried out drone and ballistic missile attacks on the Saudi capital Riyadh, as well as energy sites on the country's Red Sea coast.

Defensive support is described by UK officials as that which aides Saudi air force jets shooting down incoming Houthi missiles and drones.

The singular Voyager aircraft is part of a core fleet of nine - eight military registered and another civilian registered - on the Royal Air Force (RAF)'s books.