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Pakistani fighter jets conducted strikes against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen as the Mecca Pact with Saudi Arabia was activated for the first time. Around 8,000 Pakistani soldiers are also stationed in Saudi Arabia. This drags Pakistan into the larger Middle East conflict.
New Delhi,Oct 8, 2026 18:16 IST
Pakistan Air Force fighter jets are being used in strikes against Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, as Islamabad has reportedly stepped up military support for Saudi Arabia under the newly activated Mecca defence pact, according to a report in The New York Times.
A senior Pakistani military official, speaking anonymously, told the NYT that Pakistan Air Force fighter aircraft were being used in attacks targeting the Houthis.
The development marks a significant expansion of Pakistan's military role in the escalating conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, who have intensified missile and drone attacks on Saudi territory in recent days.
Pakistani military personnel are already stationed in Saudi Arabia, CNN reported on Wednesday. Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, head of Pakistan's military media wing, confirmed to CNN that Pakistani forces were present in the Gulf kingdom, although he did not disclose their numbers or capabilities, citing the classified nature of the deployment.
The confirmation comes days after Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey moved to activate their collective defence arrangement, known as the Mecca Pact.
The three countries signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in August. Under the pact, an armed attack against any one of the three countries is to be treated as an attack against all three, creating a collective-security framework similar in principle to a mutual-defence arrangement.
The pact was put into practical operation this week after an emergency meeting of the three countries' strategic political and defence committee in Riyadh. The members agreed to move towards the rapid deployment of military forces and capabilities in Saudi Arabia in response to the threats facing the kingdom.
According to the NYT, US defence analyst Col David O. Smith, a former US Army attache in Pakistan and former senior Defense Intelligence Agency analyst, estimated that around 8,000 Pakistani troops are currently deployed in Saudi Arabia. He said the force includes personnel from the Pakistan Air Force and Army Air Defence and could be used to help protect critical oil infrastructure.
Smith said Pakistani troops were unlikely to take part in direct ground combat against the Houthis, given Islamabad's need to maintain its relationship with Iran.
A second Pakistani official, also speaking anonymously to the NYT, said Islamabad's role was expected to concentrate on countering the Houthi missile and drone threat through air support rather than sending ground forces into Yemen.
Pakistan's military has not officially commented on the reported use of its fighter jets in strikes against the Houthis.
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(Written by Anand Singh)
