Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday reiterated Pakistan’s full help for Saudi Arabia’s defence, saying Islamabad stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Riyadh following an tried drone assault on Makkah.
“I condemn within the strongest attainable phrases the dastardly and heinous tried drone assault towards the Holy Website of Makkah Al-Mukarramah,” he wrote in a put up on X.
The prime minister’s assertion comes after Saudi Arabia stated its air defences destroyed a Houthi drone south of Makkah earlier than it entered prohibited airspace over the holy metropolis.
The drone, intercepted on Tuesday night, was the second Houthi try to focus on Makkah, a spokesperson for the Saudi-led army coalition in Yemen stated.
Houthi officers have denied focusing on Makkah.
PM Shehbaz hailed the “extraordinary vigilance, braveness, and professionalism of the Royal Saudi Armed Forces” for his or her swift and heroic motion.
The prime minister urged all events to train most restraint and to step again from the brink of additional escalation.
“Our area has already suffered far an excessive amount of from battle. Dialogue and diplomacy stay the one sustainable path in the direction of peace,” he stated.
The prime minister reiterated that Islamabad stood “unwaveringly” with Riyadh within the defence of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, in addition to for the safety and sanctity of the Haramain Sharifain.
A day earlier, Pakistan’s Everlasting Consultant to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, stated that the Houthi army escalation inside Yemen, continued assaults towards Saudi Arabia and the most recent army developments alongside the Purple Beach have introduced the battle to an especially harmful juncture.
“Pakistan condemns, within the strongest phrases, all Houthi assaults towards the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” he stated whereas talking in the course of the United Nations Safety Council assembly on Yemen on Tuesday.
Throughout his tackle on the UNSC, Ambassador Ahmad recalled that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif — in his dialog with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — condemned the assaults and underscored that they threaten regional peace and stability with severe penalties for the worldwide economic system and vitality safety.
“Pakistan will proceed its earnest efforts on the highest ranges to assist diffuse tensions and advance peace and stability within the area,” he stated.
Pakistan reaffirms its unwavering help for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, safety, and prosperity of Saudi Arabia, he stated, including that Islamabad “totally helps the dominion’s reputable proper to take all crucial measures to defend” itself towards any menace.
Rising menace to freedom of navigation
The envoy famous that the enlargement of Houthi assaults in and round Bab al-Mandab, a significant maritime hall, represented a severe escalation.
“Mixed with continued violations of worldwide legislation towards industrial transport, these developments pose a rising menace to freedom of navigation and the uninterrupted stream of worldwide maritime commerce,” he stated.
Ambassador Ahmad maintained that any try to threaten, impede, or weaponise the waterways can have penalties for worldwide commerce and industrial transport, world provide chains, and vitality safety.
He lamented that the relative calm maintained in Yemen since 2022 has collapsed, warning that continued escalation dangers reigniting a full-scale battle and drawing Yemen deeper into the broader regional confrontation.
“This have to be prevented,” the envoy stated.
Highlighting the humanitarian state of affairs in Yemen, Ambassador Ahmad stated that the continued developments additional exacerbate the state of affairs within the nation, compounding the struggling of the Yemeni individuals.
He reiterated Pakistan’s help for the resumption of an inclusive, Yemeni-led and Yemeni-owned political course of beneath the UN auspices.
Pakistan will proceed to help all honest efforts in the direction of de-escalation, dialogue, and a complete political settlement that may deliver lasting peace and stability to Yemen and the broader area, he stated.
Individually, Deputy Prime Minister and International Minister Ishaq Dar stated that “such a provocative act” violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia.
In a put up on X, he stated that the tried assault on the holy metropolis “gravely” offended the spiritual sentiments of Muslims worldwide, and threatened regional peace and safety.
DPM Dar reaffirmed that Pakistan stood firmly with the management and other people of the Saudi Arabia in safeguarding the sanctity and safety of the 2 holy mosques, and guaranteeing the protection of pilgrims, residents and residents.
