Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan forge defensive alliance amid regional tensions

In the shadow of Mecca's sacred geography, three of the Muslim world's most consequential powers — Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan — have bound themselves together in a mutual defence compact, a formal acknowledgment that the old architecture of regional security is straining under the weight of prolonged conflict. The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, signed as Iranian strikes continue to batter Gulf infrastructure and the Strait of Hormuz remains choked, reflects a quiet but profound reckoning: that nations which once relied on distant guarantors may now need to forge their own shields. It i