SAUDI ALLIES RALLY SUPPORT AS HOUTHI ATTACKS ESCALATE

September 25, 2026

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are preparing an urgent meeting of their military chiefs to discuss support for the kingdom after a sharp increase in attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement. The talks will take place under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement signed by the three countries in August.

The Houthis said they launched dozens of missiles and drones at Saudi targets on Thursday, while Saudi authorities said six ballistic missiles were intercepted. Saudi Arabia had also issued emergency alerts covering areas including Mecca, Jeddah and Yanbu, a major Red Sea oil port.

Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti, the kingdom’s highest religious authority, called on Saudi troops to be prepared to fight the Houthis until the group is removed from power. Meanwhile, Saudi, Turkish and Pakistani foreign ministers condemned attacks targeting Mecca and other civilian locations and reaffirmed Saudi Arabia’s right to defend itself.

The defence pact provides that an attack on one of its signatories constitutes an attack on all three. Turkey’s Chief of General Staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu is expected to travel to Saudi Arabia for discussions with his Saudi and Pakistani counterparts on measures to support Riyadh.

The developments came shortly after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian sought to distance Tehran from the Houthis, saying in a US television interview that the Yemeni group was responsible for its own actions. The latest escalation has also raised concerns over Saudi oil infrastructure and regional energy supplies.