Experts say the recent spate of attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) targeting Saudi Arabia underscores the growing era of "war at a distance" in the Middle East, as the region's regular armies and numerous paramilitary groups operating within it increasingly use drones for various purposes.
Al-Arabiya writes about this.
The Iranian-backed Yemeni rebel movement "Ansar Allah" ("Helpers of Allah", the Houthis) has increased its attacks with the use of UAVs against government facilities in Saudi Arabia, including the oil infrastructure of the kingdom. In recent weeks, more than a dozen air raids from Yemen deep into Saudi territory have been registered, the Pan-Arab TV channel recalls.
Yossi Mekelberg, a researcher at the London-based think tank Chatham House, told Al-Arabiya that "more and more unmanned technologies" are being used by militants in the Middle East in this region.
"If you think about it, this is a cheap way of waging war, if you have the appropriate technology," the expert said. According to him, those who use drones are also attracted by the "element of denial".
"This is effective, armies and groups do not need to risk their personnel, and it makes it possible to plausibly deny their responsibility for the attacks," the analyst explained.
"This is a time of war at a distance, and drones, unfortunately, are the way forward (for militants). We will see (in the future) a lot of internal incidents with this type of weapons throughout the region, whether in Saudi Arabia, Syria, Israel, Lebanon or Afghanistan, " the source said.
Mekelberg draws attention to the fact that a single drone attack is enough to cause significant damage to the enemy, Eadaily notes.
