‘No aggressive element’: Pakistan on defence pact with Saudi Arabia amid Houthi strikes on Mecca

With Iran-backed Houthis opening a new front in the war in West Asia, Pakistan has now addressed its defence pact with Saudi Arabia and its position on the conflict.Speaking to Al Arabiya English, Pakistan Army spokesperson Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said the defence pact between Saudi, Pakistan and Turkey had “no aggressive element” and was based on “collective deterrence”, terming it as “purely defensive.”The remarks come after the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen accused the Houthi rebels on Wednesday of targeting Islam's holy city Mecca, triggering outrage across the Muslim world and deepening the already raging conflict in the region. Yahya Saree, the Houthis' military spokesperson, denied the group had targeted Mecca and called the Saudi reports a set-up for propaganda.