Pakistan slams drone attacks against Saudi Arabia as ‘grave threat’ to regional peace

Pakistan on Monday condemned recent drone attacks carried out against Saudi Arabia amid the recent resumption and escalation of hostilities in the Middle East that have also involved the kingdom and Yemen’s Houthis now.

“Such provocative attacks pose a grave threat to peace and stability across the entire region,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.

It added that Pakistan “stands in solidarity with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and reaffirms its strong and unwavering support for the Kingdom’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and peace and prosperity”.

“Pakistan has taken, and will continue to take, all possible steps to support efforts aimed at achieving lasting peace, security and stability in the region,” it further said.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia said that its air defences had intercepted and destroyed several drones launched from Iraqi territory targeting oil facilities in the kingdom.

A Defence Ministry statement said the drones were shot down over the past several hours before they could reach petroleum facilities in the Eastern Province and the Riyadh region.

The attempted attacks originated from Iraqi territory and were carried out by “Iran-backed terrorist militias”, the statement added.

“Saudi Arabia reserves its legitimate right to defend itself, its territory and critical infrastructure, and retains the right to respond at the appropriate time and place,” the ministry said.

READ: Houthis fire on Saudi oil sites; no US strike on Iran for first time in two weeks

The Saudi Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks and stressed the kingdom’s determination “to safeguard its security and sovereignty, deter aggressors, and exercise its right to respond to the sources of the attacks.”

It called on the Iraqi government to take all necessary measures to ensure that Iraqi territory is not used as “a launching point” for attacks against Saudi Arabia.

The incident comes despite a recent lull in direct military exchanges between the US and Iran.