Mecca pact nations hold talks with Iran to prevent renewed Middle East war
Senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan held talks in Iran on Monday aimed at preventing renewed fighting in the Middle East, with Tehran describing discussions as “very good”. The diplomatic push, attended by Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, followed warnings from Washington, Tehran and Israel of renewed hostilities.
Fresh explosions rattled Riyadh overnight, which has suffered weeks of attacks from the Iran-backed Houthis, after the group claimed a new attack on the Saudi capital's international airport on Sunday.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen later reported intercepting three Houthi-launched drones over southern Saudi Arabia and the Riyadh region.
Responding to the weeks of attacks, Egypt's parliament approved President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's request to approve defensive military support for Saudi Arabia "if requested". It was not clear exactly what support was on offer.
US-Iran mediation efforts have been led by Qatar and Pakistan. A Qatari delegation visited Tehran on Sunday, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said.
Andreas Krieg of the London-based risk consultancy MENA analytica said Prince Khalid's presence in Tehran was "hugely significant", calling him the "strategic mastermind of Saudi Arabia".
Prince Khalid, brother of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler, has emerged as one of Saudi Arabia's key diplomatic interlocutors, repeatedly dispatched on sensitive regional missions.
"Riyadh is investing serious political capital in dialogue with Iran, seeking to contain escalation and create a credible diplomatic path out of the crisis," Ali Shihabi, a Saudi analyst who is close to the government, posted on social media.
Recent comments have heightened speculation about renewed conflict.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Washington "may do another little Epic Fury", referring to the US-Israeli campaign against Iran that began on February 28.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Iran may try to disrupt the Israeli elections, where he is in a neck-and-neck race to stay in power.
"We have intelligence signs that our enemies, Iran and its proxies, could challenge us with attacks in order to disrupt the elections," Netanyahu, who faces an election on Tuesday, said in a video released by his office.
The remarks came as Israel's Channel 12, citing unnamed sources, reported a confrontation between Netanyahu and army chief Eyal Zamir over an unspecified new directive in the war with Iran, which the premier denied.
