ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s religious affairs minister on Tuesday strongly condemned Houthi attacks hitting civilian infrastructure and Umrah pilgrims in Saudi Arabia, saying Islamabad considers any attack on the Kingdom as an attack on Pakistan under its defense agreements with Saudi Arabia.
Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf made the remarks while speaking to Arab News after attending a press conference at the National Press Club in Islamabad, where leaders of prominent Pakistani religious parties and parliamentarians gathered to express solidarity with the Kingdom.
The remarks followed several attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi militia targeting Saudi civilian and oil facilities. A Pakistani national was killed and 11 other people were injured in an attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Sunday, Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said.
Speaking to Arab News, Yousaf expressed Pakistan’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia and said that Islamabad viewed the security and stability of the Kingdom as inseparable from its own.
“Any attacks that anyone has launched on Saudi Arabia, we consider them attacks on Pakistan,” the minister said. “No Muslim can tolerate attacks on Haramain Sharifain (Two Holy Mosques) and Hejaz-e-Muqaddas (Makkah and Madinah) to weaken the power of Muslims.”
Pakistan is taking practical steps to support Saudi Arabia and the recently signed Makkah defense pact between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye is aimed at ensuring collective security through concrete defensive measures, according to the minister.
“Pakistan has also practically proven it (support for Saudi Arabia), and for this, it is taking all kinds of steps and God willing, it will continue to take them,” Yousaf said.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a bilateral Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement last year, while Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye signed the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement in August. The defense pacts treat an armed attack on one member as an attack on all.
Yousaf denounced Houthi attacks hitting Umrah pilgrims in the Kingdom who he said posed no threat to anyone.
“(Attack on) Umrah pilgrims, this is such a heart-wrenching incident that has happened,” he said.
“See, as Muslims, this is a part of our faith. Whoever goes to perform Umrah or Hajj, goes to seek forgiveness for their sins ... They do not go to fight with someone. They do not go to attack someone.”
Yousaf said Pakistan’s political leadership, religious parties and state institutions stood united in support of the government’s position on Saudi Arabia.
“When the time comes, Muslims worldwide, and the people of Pakistan in particular, are fully prepared to sacrifice their lives and wealth to defend the sanctity of the Kingdom,” Yousaf said.
“We fully support all steps taken by the government and state of Saudi Arabia to ensure absolute security and peace.”
At the press conference, Pakistani religious leaders and parliamentarians condemned the attacks and called for stronger unity among Muslim countries in defense of Saudi Arabia and Islam’s holy sites.
Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, secretary general of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan and a member of parliament, said the government and people of Pakistan were united in their support for the Kingdom.
“On the issue of Saudi Arabia, government and people are on one page and I consider this a very good omen,” Haideri said. “Saudi Arabia is not merely a country; it is the center of Muslims’ religious devotion.”
Senator Dr. Hafiz Abdul Karim, patron of the Pak-Saudi Solidarity Council, condemned the attacks, particularly those hitting Umrah pilgrims.
“Makkah and Madinah, Umrah and Hajj pilgrims are red lines for all Muslims and attack on them are unacceptable. We reject those and express full solidarity with Saudi Arabia,” he said.
Shah Owais Noorani, who heads the Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan party, said Pakistan and Saudi Arabia were geographically separate but united by the bond of faith.
He said no Muslim could justify attacks on Umrah pilgrims or the holy sites of Islam.
“Who are these people who are only disturbing (peace of) Haramain Sharifain and doing conspiracies against them?” Noorani said, calling for expanding the Makkah defense agreement to establish a broader joint Islamic defense bloc to protect the holy land.