Iran-backed Houthis Trying to Build Medium-Range Ballistic Missiles With Components From a ‘Chinese

An investigative team from Conflict Armament Research (CAR), a British-based organization that tracks the supply of conventional weapons, ammunition, and related military equipment to conflict zones, said in its October report that the Iran-backed Houthi militant group, which has been involved in several recent attacks in the Middle East, is assembling advanced medium-range ballistic missiles using components from a Chinese supplier.

“The Houthis—who are under a targeted United Nations Security Council arms embargo—are expanding their supply chains beyond Iran-linked networks, with several purpose-built missile components found alongside shipping documents that listed a Chinese supplier,” CAR said in its latest Yemen Field Dispatch.

The Houthis, an Iran-backed group, have recently made global headlines for missile and drone strikes targeting Saudi Arabia, critical shipping lanes in the Red Sea, and the Yemeni Presidential Palace in Aden, where the Saudi-backed Yemeni government is based.

Their latest missile attack on Riyadh International Airport on Oct. 10, which reportedly killed 13 people and wounded hundreds, came as the U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran continues, with multiple rounds of diplomatic negotiations yielding no lasting resolution.

CAR’s Yemen Field Dispatch is particularly significant in this context. “The discovery points to a major leap in the group’s domestic production ambitions and has major regional security implications at a time when Houthi forces are intensifying their deep strike campaign against critical infrastructure in Saudi Arabia,” the dispatch reads.

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The report warns that the Houthis are attempting to manufacture at least some components of the Khaibarshekan series of ballistic missiles. The Khaibarshekan is an Iranian solid-fuel medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) operated by the Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). According to CAR investigators, these developments have major implications for regional security.

“CAR’s identification of custom-made missile components, along with raw materials, tools, and testing equipment in recent shipments intended for the Houthis, suggests that the group is seeking to manufacture at least part of the Khaibarshekan series of ballistic missiles, which have a range of more than 1,000 km,” the investigators wrote, adding that only a few countries have the capacity to manufacture missiles with comparable ranges domestically.

Expert: China is contradicting its mediatory role

Experts told Vision Times that the report contradicts China’s stated role as a mediator between Saudi Arabia and Iran and raises further security concerns in the Gulf region, which is already embroiled in a serious conflict.

Facing increased Houthi threats in September, Saudi Arabia asked China to help rein in the Houthi rebels. Beijing subsequently sent a private message to Tehran, according to anonymous sources quoted by Reuters.

“China does not wish to see regional tensions further spill over into Yemen and the Red Sea. Escalating regional instability is not in the interests of any party,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in its response, without confirming whether it had sent a private message to Iran on the matter.

Joseph A. Kéchichian, a senior fellow at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies (KFCRIS) in Riyadh, told Vision Times that the report highlights what he described as the Houthis’ “catastrophic vision” amid their ongoing conflict with Saudi Arabia, which he characterized as a “protracted war.” He said the report also highlights a lack of consistency on China’s part.

“What is particularly troubling is the lack of consistency on China’s part, namely to help mediate between Iran and Saudi Arabia on the one hand, while providing weapons systems to the Houthis on the other,” Kéchichian said.

Grant Newsham, a senior fellow at the Yorktown Institute and the Center for Security Policy, and a research fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies, analyzed the report in the context of the looming prospect of war between the United States and Iran and the intensifying geopolitical competition between the United States and China.

“The Chinese Communists will do anything to weaken the United States. Arming the Houthis (along with arming the Iranians) with weaponry and components is a logical move for Beijing,” Newsham told Vision Times.

He suggested that only hard-hitting punitive action targeting Chinese economic interests would have any effect in persuading Beijing to change its ways.

“And this Chinese behavior will continue until Beijing faces real punishment—such as the delisting of all Chinese companies on U.S. exchanges, the exclusion of China’s major banks from the U.S. dollar system, the exposure and seizure of Xi Jinping’s and other top CCP officials’ immense wealth—much of it held overseas—and the cancellation of their relatives’ residence permits.”

Houthis building missiles and UAVs with components from 16 countries

According to another CAR report released in May, titled “Analysing Houthi Missile Components,” the Houthis have access to a diverse supply of missile and drone components acquired from 16 countries and territories.

The report says the Houthi arsenal now includes an array of advanced missiles and drones that pose a direct threat to shipping, critical infrastructure, and populated areas across the wider region.

“CAR field investigations documented more than 800 missile and UAV components in the June 2025 Al Sherwa seizure. These were branded with the marks of companies headquartered in at least 16 countries and territories: Australia, China, France, Germany, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, Switzerland, Taiwan, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States,” CAR’s investigators said in the 22-page report.

The Al Sherwa seizure in June 2025 involved the interception by Yemen’s National Resistance Forces (NRF) of a local sailing vessel carrying a large consignment of weapons and military components reportedly destined for the Houthi arsenal. The NRF opposes the Iran-backed Houthis. The U.S. Central Command described the seizure as the largest in the NRF’s history. The seizure became an important source of evidence for CAR’s investigation into how the Houthis acquired and assembled advanced missiles and uncrewed systems.

“Investigators recorded components linked to Iranian-origin missiles not previously observed by CAR in Houthi possession (CAR, 2025c). One recent system is the Ghadr-380 anti-ship cruise missile, which was officially unveiled in Iran in February 2025 (AFP, 2025),” CAR said in its May report.

The investigation also documents missiles from the Quds series, a family of land-attack cruise missiles, and the Burkan-3, a ballistic missile. According to CAR, both weapon systems are of Iranian origin.