{
  "id": 11453111,
  "title": "DPM Dar says committee under Makkah defence pact to meet in Riyadh 'soon'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/dpm-dar-says-committee-under-makkah-defence-pact-to-meet-in-riyadh",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-02T14:03:33.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dawn - Pakistan",
    "slug": "dawn-pakistan",
    "url": "https://www.dawn.com/news/2034260/dpm-dar-says-committee-under-makkah-defence-pact-to-meet-in-riyadh-soon"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar announced on Friday that the Strategic Political Defence Committee (SPDC) of the Makkah Defence Alliance would convene in Riyadh \"soon\". This announcement came during a press briefing related to the Pakistan delegation's participation in the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, as well as high-level meetings that took place in New York. Dar explained that the meeting was planned because the three countries involved in the alliance—the foreign ministers, defence ministers, and chiefs of army staff from each country—were all present in New York. Prior to the meeting, the defence ministers of the three countries had already met in Riyadh on September 25 due to the increased Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. Dar stated that the upcoming SPDC meeting in Riyadh would examine the current situation and ground reality, particularly concerning Saudi Arabia. The meeting, which has been agreed upon in principle, will focus on the Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia, as had the previous meeting of foreign ministers in New York. Dar emphasized that Pakistan had already condemned the Houthi attack on a power plant in Madina and that the country would not tolerate such actions. He also mentioned that he had discussed the Houthi attacks with Iran, reminding Iran of Pakistan's commitment to the trilateral agreement. Iran denied any involvement with the Houthis or the Iraqi militia, suggesting that the Houthis should be engaged politically rather than through military action. Dar noted that at least six countries were interested in joining the Makkah defence pact, which aims to strengthen collective deterrence and ensure that an attack against one member is treated as an attack against all. The first meeting of the SPDC took place in Istanbul on August 31, with Pakistan initially heading the alliance's secretariat for three years.",
  "summary": "Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Friday that a meeting of Makkah Defence Alliance’s Strategic Political Defence Committee (SPDC) would take place in Riyadh “soon”. The deputy premier was addressing a press briefing regarding the Pakistan delegation’s engagements at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York in September, as well as…",
  "key_points": [
    "Strategic Political Defence Committee (SPDC) of Makkah Defence Alliance to meet in Riyadh soon.",
    "Meeting planned due to presence of all three countries' leaders in New York.",
    "SPDC will focus on Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia and increased attacks."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Ajel English",
        "title": "Pakistan foreign minister: Strategic defense committee to meet soon in Riyadh under Mecca Pact",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/pakistan-foreign-minister-strategic-defense-committee-to-meet-soon-in",
        "published": "2026-10-02T12:13:47.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Dawn - Pakistan",
        "title": "DPM Dar says committee under Makkah pact to meet in Riyadh 'soon'",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/dpm-dar-says-committee-under-makkah-pact-to-meet-in-riyadh-soon",
        "published": "2026-10-02T12:26:56.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Daily Times",
        "title": "Makkah pact committee meeting planned in Riyadh soon",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/makkah-pact-committee-meeting-planned-in-riyadh-soon",
        "published": "2026-10-02T14:38:20.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}