Key takeaways
- A Saudi, Pakistani and Turkish delegation reached Tehran on October 26 for talks with Iran's security chief, Major General Mohsen Rezaei.
- Riyadh says the trip is de-escalation, while Iran's deputy security secretary said its first aim was to congratulate Major General Rezaei on assuming this important responsibility.
- Houthi missile fire at Saudi Arabia and Trump's strike threats continued as the delegation arrived, and no Yemen concession had been agreed.
A senior delegation from the Mecca Pact arrived in Tehran on Monday, October 26, for talks with Iran's leadership and its Supreme National Security Council (SNSC). The delegation was Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman Al Saud, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Ibrahim Kalin, director of Turkey's National Intelligence Organization (MİT). They were due to meet Major General Mohsen Rezaei, SNSC secretary since August, who was to lead the Iranian side, according to Al Jazeera. Ali Bagheri Kani, the SNSC deputy secretary, was quoted by state media announcing the joint meeting. Iranian state television (IRIB) and foreign ministry officials confirmed the visit.
The Mecca Pact rests on the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, signed on August 7. Under it, an armed attack against any of the three signatories would be regarded as an attack on all, according to the joint statement issued when it was signed. Pakistan ratified it last week, and Turkey's parliament has yet to do so. The delegation arrived while Houthi missiles were again targeting Saudi Arabia and Donald Trump was again talking about striking Iran.
Missiles over the Kingdom, threats from Washington
Trump told a rally on October 23 that the United States may launch "another little Epic Fury", and told reporters in West Palm Beach on October 24 that a new strike on Iran could come "maybe tomorrow". Epic Fury was the earlier US campaign against Iran. He also said a "nice big beautiful agreement" is possible if Iran eliminates its nuclear capability. Crisis.Zone reported his remarks on October 25. Qatari mediators held separate de-escalation meetings in Tehran the same day, in an effort coordinated with Washington.
The Houthis are the Iran-aligned movement that controls Sanaa and much of northern Yemen. On October 25 and 26 they launched missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said on X that the group had struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with a ballistic missile and hit crude oil pumping stations in the east and west of Saudi Arabia with drones. He also said the group had targeted positions in Aden and Lahij governorates.
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted ballistic missiles over Riyadh, Taif and Yanbu. It also said it destroyed five tunnels used to store ballistic missiles, four launch platforms and a missile depot in Houthi-controlled areas, and two launch platforms in Sanaa. Sirens sounded in Mecca, Jeddah, Yanbu and Taif, as they had on October 24 when ballistic missiles struck Aden. The first civil defense alert inside Mecca came on September 15, after a drone was intercepted south of the city.
Air India, Akasa Air and IndiGo extended flight suspensions to Saudi airports. The Riyadh airport had partially reopened only days earlier, after Houthi strikes that killed 17 people there between October 1 and 15, according to the Saudi-led coalition, 12 of them in a single attack on October 10.
Observers are reading: how Tehran and Riyadh describe the same visit differently, and why no Yemen-for-restraint trade has been agreed.
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A clock set elsewhere
Israel votes on Tuesday, October 27, under elevated alert. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned of imminent disruption by Iran or its proxies. Israeli media reported tension between Netanyahu and Israel Defense Forces chiefs over strikes before the vote. Americans vote in midterm elections on November 3. Both dates narrow the time for diplomacy.
The format of the talks sets a second limit. Washington is absent, but mediators were to meet Iranian officials in Tehran. Iran passes messages through intermediaries, and Trump's remarks have swung between a strike "maybe tomorrow" and talk of a deal.
The visit shows that regional powers want a containment wall around the confrontation. In this analysis, words in Tehran cannot outrun missiles already in flight unless Washington and Tehran resolve the blockade and nuclear standoff. Reporting on Monday described the delegation's aims, not its results.
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