SANA’A / ISLAMABAD / ANKARA | Nazrana Times Ali Imran Chattha 
Yemen’s Houthi movement has warned Pakistan and Türkiye against joining Saudi Arabia in a military intervention in Yemen, threatening a “decisive and painful” response as hostilities between the movement and Riyadh escalate amid reported missile and drone attacks.
Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of Ansar Allah’s political bureau and governor of Dhamar, issued the warning during an interview with the Iraqi television programme Another Reading. He said that if Pakistani or Turkish forces joined an offensive alongside Riyadh, the Houthis would respond with an “iron fist” and “teach” both countries a lesson.
“By God … we will strike them with an iron fist,” al-Bukhaiti said, adding that the movement would “discipline” any foreign power entering the conflict. He drew comparisons with previous Houthi strikes against Western naval assets and regional targets.
Acknowledging Public Sympathy, Warning Governments
Al-Bukhaiti acknowledged what he described as strong sympathy for Yemen among the Pakistani and Turkish populations. He said the warning was directed at the two governments should they become militarily involved, rather than at their citizens.
The Houthi leadership claimed that most people in Pakistan and Türkiye sympathise with the humanitarian situation in Yemen. It urged the governments in Islamabad and Ankara to remain neutral and avoid entering a conflict that, it said, does not directly involve their borders.
The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement Under Strain

The warning has renewed attention on the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement (MJDA), a trilateral collective-security pact signed by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye on August 7, 2026

The agreement is grounded in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter and stipulates that an armed attack against one signatory will be regarded as an attack against all three.
The label “Islamic NATO” began circulating within hours of the signing, drawing comparisons with NATO’s Article 5 collective-defence principle. However, unlike NATO, the Mecca pact does not have an institutional structure, established command arrangements or a long-standing bureaucracy. Analysts say these limitations have contributed to its inability to shield Saudi Arabia from the ongoing Houthi attacks.
The pact also remains unratified. Türkiye and Pakistan must complete domestic parliamentary processes, while Saudi Arabia must approve it through a royal decree. The mutual-defence terms are therefore not yet legally binding. The agreement also does not set out an escalation framework or specify what response would be expected from a member, or at what stage, if another signatory came under attack.
The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement Under Strain

Pakistan has publicly condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia as violations of the Kingdom’s sovereignty. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif described a purported attack near Mecca as “dastardly and heinous” and called for “maximum restraint”. He said the security and sanctity of Haramain Sharifain—the holy sanctuaries of Mecca and Medina—was “a duty that every Pakistani carries close to their heart”.
Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said that under the trilateral agreement, if a country’s territorial integrity came under threat, the pact would be activated and the other two countries would act to protect it in fulfilment of their obligations. He also told a private television channel that the protection of Mecca and Medina was a “permanent agreement”.
However, Pakistani officials have confirmed that Saudi Arabia has not formally requested military support. Officials from Pakistan and Türkiye, speaking anonymously to The Associated Press, also said they had not received a Saudi request for assistance in response to the Houthi escalation.
A Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson said: “Pakistan is determined, both in intentions and in the spirit of the agreement, to fulfil its defence commitments to Saudi Arabia.” The spokesperson added that operational details—including “when, how, where, what forces will be used, against what targets”—required discretion at this stage.

 Türkiye’s Stance: Solidarity and Caution
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Saudi Arabia’s regional integrity and sovereignty had come under severe attack and that Türkiye, in line with the agreement, expressed full solidarity with Riyadh.
He added that if Saudi Arabia required military-level assistance, the Mecca Alliance could provide necessary technical and military cooperation alongside Pakistan.
Türkiye has also exercised caution. Turkish officials have said that Parliament has yet to approve the defence treaty. Like Pakistan, Ankara has prioritised de-escalation over direct military involvement.

Renewed Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia
 The warning comes amid a sharp escalation in hostilities. On September 19, the Houthis announced two military operations targeting what they described as “sensitive” sites in Riyadh and Aramco facilities in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu. The movement said it used dozens of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones.
 Saudi Arabia said its air defences intercepted a ballistic missile over Riyadh. The Houthis, meanwhile, reported that Saudi Arabia had carried out 732 airstrikes in Yemen.
 The Houthis have also made significant territorial gains, according to the account. On September 10, they captured the strategic Red Sea port of Mocha and other territory along Yemen’s western coast. By September 17, Ansar Allah was said to control much of the country’s Red Sea coastline, placing it in a position to disrupt Saudi oil flows along the western coast.
 This comes as shipping along Saudi Arabia’s eastern coast is already facing disruption because of the Strait of Hormuz blockade. Global oil prices have reportedly crossed $100 per barrel, up from $70 in June 2026.
 Saudi Arabia’s Diplomatic Efforts
 Saudi Arabia has reportedly sought military support from several partners, but without success so far. The Kingdom is said to have asked the United States for assistance, which was declined. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly called US President Donald Trump twice to urge strikes against the Houthis, but Trump refused.
 Riyadh also approached China to put pressure on Iran. China reportedly responded, but the efforts have produced no visible results.
 After receiving a cold response from Washington, Saudi Arabia has turned to Europe for security support. However, the European Union is considered unlikely to provide direct military intervention or offensive assistance, given documented human rights violations in Yemen.
 Regional and Strategic Implications
 The situation marks the first major test of the Mecca pact, which was designed to diversify Saudi Arabia’s security partnerships and provide a hedge against a possible reduction in the United States’ traditional security role in West Asia.
 Major General Raza Muhammad (retired), a former Pakistani ambassador, told ThePrint that the Mecca Agreement was defensive in nature.
 “It predicates on collective deterrence against aggression in any of the partner countries. When the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Türkiye or Pakistan are directly attacked or their territorial integrity is breached, then the other partners will most likely react after collective decision,” he said.
 Analysts note that Pakistan’s principal security concern remains India, alongside intermittent tensions with Afghanistan’s Taliban government. Türkiye, meanwhile, has a broader security perimeter encompassing Syria, Iraq, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Caucasus—factors that could complicate any military commitment to Saudi Arabia.
 The three countries have different strategic interests, and it remains uncertain whether their political commitments can be translated into meaningful military coordination. For now, the Mecca pact is still taking shape and is not yet operational.
 Nazrana Times will continue to monitor this developing story.