Your trusted source

The first troops from Saudi Arabia's National Guard have been deployed on the border with Yemen, official media said late Sunday, according to AFP.

They will join members of the border guard and the army who have reinforced the frontier since March 26 when a Saudi-led coalition began airstrikes against Shiite Houthi rebels and their allies in Yemen.

The vanguard of National Guard troops "have arrived in Najran region to participate in the defense of the southern borders... so as to confront any possible threats," the official Saudi Press Agency said.

King Salman announced on April 21 the National Guard's mobilization, just hours before the coalition declared an end to its air campaign dubbed "Operation Decisive Storm."

Despite that declaration, the coalition has continued daily airstrikes in Yemen, where Iran-backed Houthi rebels are allied with army units loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

They are fighting forces loyal to President Abed Rabbou Mansour Hadi, who has fled to Riyadh with members of his government.

A diplomatic source has told AFP the decision to deploy the National Guard was made the week prior to King Salman's announcement.