Pakistan Calls on Iran to Rein In Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia

(MENAFN) Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, has pressed Iran to persuade Yemen's Houthi movement to halt strikes on Saudi Arabia's energy facilities, Pakistani government sources told media on Thursday.

In Islamabad's latest bid to broker a negotiated end to the escalating Middle East conflict, Munir held a phone call with Iran's top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, urging Tehran to "use its influence" on the Houthis to stop their attacks on Saudi oil and economic infrastructure, the sources said.

The call took place during Araghchi's visit to China on Wednesday, Iranian state media confirmed.

"The army chief discussed the overall regional situation, with special focus on Houthis' attacks and revival of stalled direct talks between the US and Iran," a source familiar with the developments said.

Islamabad has previously cautioned that the recent escalation risks further complicating an already volatile regional picture.

The sources described Araghchi's response as "hopeful," though they offered no additional details.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has said Tehran does not interfere in Yemeni affairs, characterizing the Houthis as independent actors "pursuing their own interests."

The latest exchange follows a day after a Houthi drone was intercepted near the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, an incident that drew condemnation from the international community, including Muslim-majority nations. The Houthis have denied responsibility for the drone.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a bilateral defense pact last year, which paved the way for a trilateral Mecca defense agreement involving Türkiye, concluded last month.

Yemen has been engulfed in war since the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in 2014, triggering intervention by a Saudi-led Arab coalition in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.

Since July, the group has resumed fighting with government forces after declaring a maritime blockade on Riyadh, and has recently claimed territorial gains along the Red Sea coast and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The Houthis' attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure have also pushed international oil prices higher.

Islamabad Reaffirms Commitment to Defense Pacts

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry reiterated Thursday its commitment to "implementing" both the bilateral defense agreement and the trilateral Mecca pact.

"However, when, how, where and what force will be used against what objectives, in which modes and matters ... — operational confidentiality requires us to be discreet at this stage," Foreign Ministry spokesman Sajjad Haider Khan told reporters in Islamabad.

He was responding to a question on whether "any mechanism had been devised as to how Pakistan will ensure that recent Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia are thwarted."

"Pakistan has for a long time ... shared the perspective that we would like to have peace and stability because this is not only in the interest of Pakistan and Iran, but also the entire region and beyond," Khan said, according to a newspaper.

He called the situation in Bab al-Mandeb "exceptionally serious," urging the Houthis to "stop their activities."

"In this regard, our discussions basically revolve around bringing peace and stability through dialogue and diplomacy and not through coercive measures," he added.

Push to Revive Stalled US-Iran Talks

Sources said Munir and Araghchi also discussed avenues for reviving stalled direct talks between Tehran and Washington aimed at ending their months-long conflict.

Araghchi indicated Iran is prepared to return to negotiations provided the U.S. halts hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz and "abides by the Islamabad memorandum," the sources added.

China is also supporting Pakistan's efforts to restart the U.S.-Iran dialogue and prevent the conflict from spreading further, according to the sources.

"Beijing is equally worried about the raging hostilities because it's getting its oil bill heavier," one source said, without elaborating on the nature of China's involvement.

During his meeting with Araghchi in Beijing on Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi encouraged both Iran and the U.S. to exercise restraint, return to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, and "engage in substantive consultations."

China "does not want to see regional tensions to spill over further into Yemen and the Red Sea," Wang added.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington next week, where the two leaders are likely to address the ongoing Middle East conflict alongside other outstanding issues between the world's two largest economies.

Pakistan has served as the principal mediator between Iran and the U.S. throughout the war, which began Feb. 28, maintaining close contact with both sides.

The U.S. and Iran signed the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding on June 17 and launched negotiations toward a final agreement, though talks later stalled amid disputes over security guarantees and freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz — one of the world's most critical routes for global energy and trade.

Between July 8 and July 24, the two countries exchanged military strikes, with Washington targeting sites inside Iran and Tehran retaliating against U.S. military facilities and equipment across Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait.

Following a ceasefire secured on April 8, Pakistan hosted the highest-level direct U.S.-Iran talks since the two countries severed diplomatic relations in 1979. Those talks, held in Islamabad on April 11-12, ended without resolution.

Since the war began on Feb. 28, more than 3,500 people — both civilians and soldiers — have been killed in Iran. Tehran has struck U.S. bases and assets across the Middle East, with the Pentagon confirming more than a dozen fatalities and dozens of additional injuries among its personnel.

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