Damage sustained by the Taiba electrical substation, which Saudi authorities attributed to a drone attack carried out by the Houthis, in this press photo taken on Sept. 29, 2026, in Medina, Saudi Arabia, and released on Oct. 1, 2026. (Photo: Saudi Press Agency/Reuters)
An emergency meeting of the strategic political defense committee, established as part of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, formally the Mecca Defense Alliance, between Pakistan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, will be dedicated to the Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia, the Pakistani foreign minister said Friday. This meeting "will take place next week," Minister Ishaq Dar told reporters.
These regional powers signed the "Mecca Joint Defense Agreement" last August, a few weeks before the Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels launched attacks against Saudi Arabia. Observers wondered at the time whether the pact's other two countries, Pakistan and Turkey, would support the Saudis in response to the Houthis’ advance toward coastal areas of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Next week's meeting falls within this context.
Dar added, without naming them, that "more than six countries wish to join the Mecca defense pact." "It will not be possible to consider new membership applications until the agreement is fully operational, which could take up to a year," the Pakistani minister told Reuters.
1 p.m. recap: Salam in Nabatieh; up to 10,000 more US troops heading to Middle East