Turkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia agreed to activate “deterrence measures” under a mutual defense pact and quickly deploy forces to the Gulf kingdom to counter attacks by Yemen’s Houthis. The decision was announced on Monday after the defense and foreign ministers of the three countries held an emergency meeting in Riyadh. It was the first time the alliance, known as the Alliance for the Defense of Mecca, had been invoked since it was signed on August 7. List of 3 items at the bottom of the list The agreement states that an attack on any of the three nations will be treated as an attack on all of them, reflecting a central provision of NATO’s founding treaty. “The committee agreed to activate collective deterrence measures, within the framework of the Alliance, in response to the attacks and all those responsible for them,” Khalid bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s defense minister, said in a social media post. He said the alliance had “reaffirmed the solidarity and unity of our countries, in confronting the atrocious attacks against the Kingdom and sacred sites.” A separate joint statement released by Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the three countries would “provide the agreed upon military forces and capabilities and ensure their rapid deployment” to Saudi Arabia. The engagements, according to the joint statement, would be carried out under “approved agreements” and in accordance with the The announcements came hours after forces aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognized government launched a counteroffensive to retake territory that the Iran-aligned Houthis captured last month. Yemeni forces, who are backed by Saudi Arabia, said they have retaken the Red Sea port city of Mocha and are now in control of the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The Saudi-led coalition has confirmed its participation in the Yemeni government’s offensive, saying 100 of its fighter jets are providing air support. Meanwhile, the Houthis claimed responsibility for an attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and the Aramco refinery on the coast of Rabigh. The group also said it attacked a number of sites, including an airport, an air base and other critical locations. There was no confirmation from Riyadh about the Houthi claim. Mecca Defense Pact The Mecca Defense Alliance emerged in response to the intensification of conflicts in the region, triggered by the United States and Israel’s war against Iran. The defense pact was signed in August, shortly before the Houthis launched their offensive in Yemen, which has included attacks on Saudi targets. The three alliance members combined have nearly 1.4 million active troops, approximately 3,400 military aircraft, 6,000 tanks and more than 340 naval assets, according to the Global Firepower Index 2026. The agreement initially offered few details on each country’s military obligations, although steps followed to formalize the alliance. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pose for a photo after signing a defense agreement, August 7, 2026. [Saudi Press Agency/AP]After the Houthis fired a barrage of missiles at Saudi Arabia in early September, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said an attack on the kingdom could kick-start the pact. “If there is unprovoked aggression, or a contagion of what is happening in Yemen to Saudi Arabia, definitely the Mecca agreement will come into force,” Asif told Geo News, a Pakistani outlet. However, as of Monday, the alliance had not taken any action. Analysts had said Pakistan and Turkiye were reluctant to abandon their roles as mediators in the US-Israel war against Iran. Abdulaziz Alghashian, a senior non-resident member of the Gulf International Forum, said the decision to activate the Mecca defense pact will have a major impact on the region’s security. “The Houthi attacks and provocations in recent weeks and months really accelerated the Mecca alliance, even inspired it,” Alghashian told Al Jazeera. They “helped” push its structure, he said. Alghashian said the episode also offered a glimpse of a regional security architecture that was taking shape. “Many times we continue to talk about regional security architecture, it is one of those very elegant words,” he said. “A lot of times it’s empty and not many people know what it means in detail. But I think now we’re starting to see it come to fruition. It’s a critical moment in the history of the region.”
