Houthi terrorists
Houthi terroristsREUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

The Yemeni Houthi rebel group has deployed fighters from Yemen to Syria, to escalate operations against Israel, Sputnik reported Friday, citing a source familiar with the matter.

According to the source, "a a brigade-sized force" of several thousand elite Houthi fighters arrived in Syria "in small groups via Jordan, with high-level Syrian-Lebanese intelligence coordination."

The source added that "the Yemeni force that arrived in Syria is considered one of the strongest and most well-prepared and equipped combat formations."

Over the past few months, the force has held training exercises simulating attacks on targets similar to Israeli settlements and military bases, the source added.

According to Kan News, the special forces entered Syria in small groups, through Jordan; the report noted that there are daily flights between Sana'a, Yemen's capital, and Jordan.

The report added that only a few thousand of the Houthi special forces are in Syria, and that they operate under the command of an officer on the rank of general.

An unnamed Syrian official told Israel's i24NEWS, "In recent days, Houthi fighters from Iraq have arrived in southern Syria to open a new front using drones against Israel, where they will be stationed in the Golan Heights near the Israeli border."