Saudi-Led Military Alliance Intercepts Houthi Attacks on Riyadh

Israeli media reported Saturday that the Saudi-led military coalition intercepted Houthi missile and drone attacks targeting Riyadh and Khamis Mushait, as regional defence chiefs convened in the Saudi capital to coordinate security strategy under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement. The Jerusalem Post reported the interception operation on September 26, hours after the military chiefs of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey held a high-level security meeting in Riyadh. The attacks, claimed by the Iran-aligned Ansar Allah movement, targeted two of the kingdom's most strategic locations: the capital and the southern city of Khamis Mushait, home to King Khalid Air Base. Saudi air defence systems, integrated under the coalition framework, successfully engaged the incoming projectiles, according to the report. The Riyadh meeting brought together Saudi Chief of General Staff General Fayyadh bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili, Pakistani Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Turkish Chief of General Staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu. The three commanders reviewed threats facing the kingdom, condemned Houthi attacks on civilian and economic infrastructure, including strikes targeting Mecca, and agreed to enhance intelligence sharing, military coordination, and capability integration. The meeting was held under the Makkah Agreement for Joint Defence, a mutual defence pact signed in Mecca on August 7, 2026, by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey. The agreement, which contains a collective defence clause similar to NATO Article 5, establishes a secretariat in Riyadh initially headed by a Pakistani secretary-general and is open to other regional states. Its Strategic Political and Defence Committee previously convened in Istanbul on August 31. Qatar is not a signatory to the Mecca pact and maintains its own independent defence and diplomatic relationships across the region, including channels with both Riyadh and Tehran. The timing of the Houthi attack — occurring within hours of the tripartite security meeting — underscores the volatility of the Arabian Peninsula security environment, as the three allied powers move to operationalise their new defence framework amid escalating regional tensions.