KUALA LUMPUR • Malaysian Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said that, contrary to social media reports, there had been no involvement by the Malaysian armed forces in any Saudi-led military campaign against the insurgency in Yemen.

Mr Hishammuddin said yesterday that Malaysian soldiers were undergoing the Thunder of The North military training along with other countries, reported The New Straits Times.

The exercise, which began yesterday, will last until March 4 in the Haafr Al-Batin training area.

He emphasised that the training was carried out in northern Saudi Arabia, far away from Yemen, which is at the southern Saudi Arabia border. "It is clear that the training has nothing to do with the military campaign against insurgency in Yemen," he said. He added that Malaysia had joined the training to let soldiers gain new experiences in different military operations.