Iran's Pezeshkian stresses ‘regional unity’ at meeting with Mecca Agreement states

"I hope that the presence of representatives of important and influential Islamic countries at this meeting will help further consolidate regional unity and cohesion," said the Iranian president.

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Turkey, Pakistan to deploy troops to Saudi Arabia

Turkey and Pakistan have agreed "to move immediately to the practical implementation of the collective defense commitments and to take the necessary measures to provide the agreed military forces and capabilities and ensure their rapid deployment in the Kingdom."

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Mecca pact signatories discuss implementation progress amid Houthi attacks

Despite the agreement, neither Turkey nor Pakistan have offered to directly participate in Saudi Arabia’s escalating conflict with Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

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Houthi leader says Riyadh using alleged Mecca attack to win foreign backing

"The Saudi enemy's slander against our people, claiming to target Mecca, is a major, ugly, and extremely vile lie, a blatant falsehood," said Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Zaydi Shiite political movement that now controls the majority of Yemen's population centers.

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‘Architecture of impunity’: Amnesty says Iran committed crimes against humanity during 2022 protests

Iranian authorities heavily cracked down on the 2022 demonstrations, with the monitor reporting that it had identified 377 protesters and bystanders, including 56 children, among the death toll, with at least 326 of them being killed by security forces.

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Turkey to host first Mecca agreement meeting in Istanbul

The meeting is set to bring together foreign and defense ministers as well as the military chiefs of the three signatory states.

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Trump hails Saudi-Turkey-Pakistan defense agreement

“Very happy to see that Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan have recently, and finally, signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

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The Mecca Pact and the Saudi-Gulf security dilemma 

The recent signing of a trilateral defense agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan marks a new development in the Middle East's security architecture, coming as Riyadh finds itself increasingly embroiled in conflict with Iran-aligned actors.

Mohammed A. Salih

Opinion

Iran backs regional security cooperation, rejects reliance on US

Reacting to the defense agreement, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said in a press conference that Tehran’s “fundamental policy” is “to encourage the region's countries toward cooperation and strengthening mutual trust for endogenous security, without relying on extra-regional actors.”

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