France to Send Troops and Air Defences to Guard Saudi Arabia's Yanbu Oil Facilities

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday, September 24, 2026, in interviews with French television that Paris will send troops, radars and air defence systems to Saudi Arabia to protect the Yanbu oil facilities on the Red Sea coast. He said France does not intend to enter the conflict and that protecting the site would help bring down high oil prices; according to Macron, more than five million barrels a day were passing through the route a few weeks ago.

The announcement followed claims by Yemen's Houthis on Thursday that they had carried out missile and drone attacks on Aramco facilities in Yanbu and on a "sensitive target" in Riyadh. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted six ballistic missiles, and Saudi authorities have not commented on any damage. According to Al Jazeera, November Brent futures settled above $106.50 a barrel on Thursday after topping $108 during the day; Brent was trading around $105.6 by 8:00 a.m. Tehran time on Friday, September 25.

Yanbu is Saudi Arabia's main outlet for crude exports via the Red Sea, and its importance to global supply has grown as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted.