Pakistan rejects report on use of air force against Houthis

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of Pakistan has rejected a report by The New York Times suggesting that Pakistan could use its air force against Houthi forces.

In a fact-check posted on X, the ministry described the report as ‘Fake News’.

𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 | 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 & 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

▪️ NYT above referred story attributing employment of PAF aircraft against Houthis is fake and fabricated. International Media houses are again asked to avoid speculative reporting with regards to employment of Pakistan’s Military Forces under Makkah Joint Defence Agreement.

▪️ Details of any employment, if necessary will be given by concerned authorities.

𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐬 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐞𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐝

— Fact Checker MoIB (@FactCheckerMoIB) October 8, 2026

The Ministry of Information also urged international media to avoid speculation about the possible deployment of Pakistani forces under the Mecca Joint Defence Pact.

The ministry said that if any deployment of Pakistan’s armed forces becomes necessary, details would be provided by the relevant authorities.

It is to be mentioned here that a US official and a Syrian defence official said that Damascus may deploy troops to help Saudi Arabia fight Yemen’s Houthis, as the Iran-aligned group steps up its missile and drone attacks on the kingdom, killing three people at Saudi ​airports this week.

The possible entry of Syrian forces into the battle, an overspill of the US-Iran conflict, shows how Yemen’s reignited civil war has added new chaos ‌to a region already aflame, and risks drawing regional states into gruelling mountain fighting.

A succession of loud booms was heard in Riyadh on Thursday morning which Reuters could not identify. There ​was no immediate official comment and no public early warning alerts, although some diplomats said they had received warnings, and some schools in Riyadh warned parents of shelter-in-place orders.

Yemen’s Houthi group said on Thursday it had attacked King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with a ballistic missile. The ⁠Saudi government media office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.