ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will stand by Saudi Arabia “practically and diplomatically” if the conflict involving Yemen’s Houthi rebels escalates, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said, reaffirming Islamabad’s commitment to the kingdom under the trilateral defence agreement with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.
In a post on X, Khawaja Asif reaffirmed Pakistan’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia following the attempted drone attack on Makkah, saying Islamabad would stand “shoulder to shoulder” with the kingdom in protecting its sovereignty and the sanctity of the holy sites.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the dastardly and heinous attempted drone attack on the Holy City of Mecca. This was not merely an attack on Saudi Arabia. It was an attack on the heart of Islam and on the sentiments of Muslims across the world, who revere Makkah as the holiest city,” he wrote on X.
I condemn in the strongest possible terms the dastardly and heinous attempted drone attack on the Holy City of Mecca.
This was not merely an attack on Saudi Arabia. It was an attack on the heart of Islam and on the sentiments of Muslims across the world, who revere Makkah as the…
— Khawaja M. Asif (@KhawajaMAsif) September 16, 2026
“Targeting the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the focal point of Hajj is a cowardly, terrorist act that crosses every red line. It will remain a black mark on the perpetrators,” he said and added that “Pakistan stands unwaveringly, shoulder to shoulder, with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in defence of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and in safeguarding the security and sanctity of the holy sites.”
“If the situation escalates, we will stand with Saudi Arabia, both practically and diplomatically,” Asif earlier said in an interview with Geo News.
Defence Pact
Asif told Geo TV that Pakistan would fulfil its obligations under the Pakistan-Saudi-Türkiye defence agreement, signed on August 7.
He said the pact provided that an attack threatening the territorial integrity of one member would trigger obligations by the other two members to protect it.
“There is absolutely no ambiguity,” Asif said.
He added that Pakistan’s commitment to protecting Makkah and Madina went beyond formal agreements, describing the protection of the holy sites as a religious duty.
“There is no need to activate any agreement,” he said, referring to a situation in which the holy sites themselves came under attack.
Asif also discussed the wider conflict involving Israel, the United States and Iran, arguing that Israel’s calculations had not produced the results it expected.
He said the region needed a collective response to what he described as the continuing threat posed by Israel.
In a separate post on X, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif strongly condemned what he described as a “dastardly and heinous” attempted drone attack on the holy city of Makkah, saying the incident was not only an attack on Saudi Arabia but also on the heart of Islam and the sentiments of Muslims worldwide.
He said Pakistan stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Saudi Arabia in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity and safeguarding the security and sanctity of the holy sites.
Former Envoy Reacts
Meanwhile, former Pakistan ambassador to Saudi Arabia Khan Hasham bin Saddique has strongly condemned the reported attempted Houthi drone attack targeting Makkah, calling it a “most reprehensible and highly condemnable” act.
In a statement, Saddique said the Houthis had “crossed all limits” by attempting to target Islam’s holiest city and accused the group of waging war not only against the Yemeni people but also against Saudi Arabia.
“The Houthi terrorists have crossed all limits by attempting to target the most sacred and revered Holy place at Makkah Mukarma,” Khan Hasham bin Saddique said.
He credited Saudi security forces with intercepting the threat in time and preventing what he described as a potentially major catastrophe.
Saddique called on Muslim countries to unite against the Houthi threat and said Saudi Arabia’s “brothers” should be supported in every possible way to address the situation and protect regional peace and stability.
He also called for those supporting the Houthis to be held accountable and urged the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to respond swiftly.
“I am confident the Muslim world at large and Pakistan in particular will play a vital role in remedying the situation,” he said, while expressing his prayers and best wishes for peace and stability in Saudi Arabia.
