Saudi Arabia turns to Syria for help as fighting with Houthis escalates

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syria is preparing to send fighters to Saudi Arabia to deploy along its border and potentially help it fight Iranian-backed rebels in neighboring Yemen, three officials with knowledge of the plans told The Associated Press.

Syrian military advisers have already deployed to Saudi Arabia, but no fighters have been sent to Yemen, according to a regional official and two Syrian officials, all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

Officials in Saudi Arabia did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Fighting escalated this summer in Yemen between the Houthi rebels and the government's Saudi-backed forces. The Houthis have also launched direct and deadly attacks on Saudi Arabia in what is the latest front in the regional conflict that began in February when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.

Syria, which has a supply of battle-hardened fighters after a long civil war, has so far stayed on the sidelines.

Saudi Arabia has an array of U.S.-supplied fighter jets and missile defenses but has been unable to defeat the Houthis in past rounds of conflict.

While Saudi Arabia's other allies have been reluctant to commit ground forces to its fight with the Houthis, the Syrian government is beholden to it. The Saudis provided funds to Syrian rebels during that country's civil war and have promised much-needed financial assistance for Syria's postwar reconstruction.

A Syrian official said that an initial force of about 600 Syrian special forces fighters is expected to be deployed to Saudi Arabia in the coming week. The official said Saudi Arabia insisted the fighters be Syrian nationals, not foreigners who flocked to Syria during the civil war to join different rebel factions.

The official said that a Syrian delegation led by Khaled Khattab, commander of the 82nd Division, had recently made a two-week visit to Saudi Arabia.

A second Syrian official said 36 Syrian military officials visited a command and operations room in Jeddah staffed by Saudi and Yemeni officials and received briefings on the different front lines and areas of operation.

A regional official with knowledge of the discussions said Syria had already deployed a “small number of advisers” to Saudi Arabia, where they helped train Yemeni forces inside the kingdom.

An unnamed diplomatic official in Syria dismissed reports that Syrian forces were headed to Yemen, the country's state-run news agency, SANA, reported on Saturday. The official said the agreement with Saudi Arabia focuses on training its military forces and building its capabilities.

Syrian officials have said publicly that the country is discussing the possibility of joining a joint defense agreement recently signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan.

The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, signed in August, commits the three countries to regard an attack against one as an attack on all three, and to deepen military cooperation in other ways.

The two Syrian officials said that a decision had already been made — but not publicly announced — for Syria to join the Mecca pact, while the regional official said talks were still ongoing.

One concern is that Syria might ask the other countries for their support against Israel, the regional official said. Following the ouster of Syria’s former President Bashar Assad in December 2024, Israeli forces seized control of a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone in southern Syria and have occupied it since.

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa says his government does not seek a conflict with Israel and has called for Israeli forces to withdraw.

Syria and Saudi Arabia announced last week that they had signed a military cooperation agreement, without providing details. During a visit to Riyadh by al-Sharaa, the Saudi government agreed to lend Syria more than $400 million for postwar reconstruction of homes and basic infrastructure.

Syria has turned down proposals by U.S. President Donald Trump for its forces to intervene against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. Al-Sharaa has said his focus is on rebuilding Syria after its lengthy civil war and that he wants to avoid getting embroiled in new conflicts.

But Saudi Arabia has been key to its reintegration into the Arab world, which had largely shunned Syria under Assad’s rule.

Syrian involvement in the fighting against the Houthis in Yemen could expose it to attacks by militias in neighboring Iraq that are allied with the Houthis.

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Magdy reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Abby Sewell in Beirut contributed to this report.

AP STANDARDS: The AP uses anonymous sources only when the information is vital to the news report and not opinion or speculation. The information must be unavailable except under the conditions of anonymity imposed by the source. The source must be reliable, in a position to have accurate information and approved by news managers.

FILE- In this photo provided by the Saudi Ministry of Media, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, left, during his arrival at the royal palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 2, 2025. (Saudi Ministry of Media via AP, File)

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa's African National Congress party was handed its worst election results ever Sunday in a new low point on its gradual decline in popularity as voters rebuked it for a failure to deliver basic services like water and electricity in towns and cities.

The once-dominant ANC — the party of Nelson Mandela — received 31% of the vote in Wednesday's local government elections, according to official results Sunday.

The ANC remained the largest party by total share in an election involving hundreds of parties, but the Democratic Alliance that is its main opposition won 25% of votes.

That brought closer to reality the once-unthinkable notion that the ANC that led South Africa out of the white minority rule of apartheid and delivered freedom in 1994 under Mandela might one day not be its biggest party. It used to command 70% of the vote.

The ANC's popularity has declined for more than a decade. It won 45% support in the last local elections in 2021, the first time it had dropped below 50% in any election. In 2024 it then lost its Parliamentary majority for the first time in a national election, which brought about a coalition national government and a seismic shift in South African politics with the end of the ANC's 30-year dominance.

The ANC saw a steep drop of 15 percentage points from the last local elections and the loss of approximately one-third of its support from five years ago.

“If anyone has not heard what the people are saying in this election, then you are lost,” said ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula. “This has been a very catastrophic outcome for the ANC.”

He said the results called for the ANC “to be humble, to hear our people and respect them,” and to “earn again through service and not through slogans the trust people have lent to others.”

DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis said his party — which was around 20 percentage points behind the ANC in the 2024 national election — had now “taken a big step forward” in its aim to be South Africa's biggest.

But while the ANC's popularity has dropped sharply, no single party has overtaken it as the vote has fragmented among many parties on a local and national scale.

Another seven major parties shared around 30% of the vote in these local elections, which had more than 500 parties contesting and many picking up small shares. The MK Party led by former South African President Jacob Zuma, who broke away from the ANC and was expelled by it, won the third-largest share of votes at around 10%.

Voters across South Africa have long expressed frustration over failed public services that have left many cities and towns with regular water and electricity outages, broken roads and streetlights, and uncollected refuse.

Those local government failures, along with long-held anger over corruption scandals connected to the ANC, largely were the key issues in this election. The election was to choose local government councilors that run South Africa's eight biggest cities as well as its 44 district and 205 local municipalities.

The ANC lost its place as the largest party to the DA in the economic hub of Johannesburg, the capital of Pretoria, and the large Ekurhuleni municipality east of Johannesburg. The DA also retained its control of the second biggest city of Cape Town.

In Johannesburg, where failed services have been most under scrutiny, the white-led DA put forward its former leader, 75-year-old Helen Zille, as a candidate for mayor.

Her campaign included stunts like snorkeling in a water-filled trench in the middle of a city road in an attempt to highlight the failures.

But while the ANC's decline was obvious in the biggest cities, almost all of them were left with hung councils because no party won a majority.

That meant a series of complex coalition agreements will be required to decide who governs and the ANC could be part of the governing coalitions.

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

A Democratic Alliance (DA) mayoral candidate Helen Zille is seen on election billboard in Alexandra township, on the outskirt of Johannesburg, South Africa, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)

Democratic Alliance (DA) Joburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille gestures before casting her ballot during local elections in Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)

A man casts his vote during local elections in Alexandra township, outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)

FILE - South African President Cyril Ramaphosa address the media with EU leaders in Johannesburg, South Africa, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, file)

People wait in line outside a polling station during local elections in Alexandra township, on the outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)