BRITISH troops have been secretly operating in Yemen, training Saudi forces that are partly responsible for creating the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe, investigative website Declassified has revealed.

Up to 30 army personnel are said to have been based for months at al-Ghaydah airport in Mahra, eastern Yemen, where Human Rights Watch have reported that Riyadh’s military runs a prison camp in which detainees are tortured.

Tawfiq al-Hamidi, president of Geneva-based advocacy group SAM for Rights and Liberties, said: “Saudi forces operate the airport’s prison, where they receive logistical support and military training by British troops stationed at the airport since the beginning of this year.

“There are multiple violations, some of which amount to war crimes such as torture, enforced disappearance [and] forced deportation beyond the borders of the Republic of Yemen.”

Mr Hamidi called for the airport to return to civilian hands, noting that “it could have played a positive role in alleviating the suffocating blockade” that has left millions of Yemeni children on the brink of famine.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said that Britain’s military ties to Saudi Arabia include supporting its efforts to “protect national and regional security.”