Turkey and Pakistan have agreed to deploy troops to Saudi Arabia under the Mecca Alliance, a multilateral security pact that some analysts call "Islamic NATO." The move represents the grouping's first combat test, as Saudi Arabia and its allies press on with military action against Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen.

Qatar has warned that the wider conflict with Iran is imposing costs on the entire world. Mediation efforts are still in progress, but no ceasefire has been announced. The Mecca Alliance agreement points to a turning point toward coordinated defence efforts among several Muslim-majority states in the region.