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Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan mutual defense pact
Compiled Aug 10
Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan have signed a mutual defense agreement treating an attack on one country as an attack on all three. Officials from all three nations have stressed the pact is purely defensive and not directed at Iran or any other specific country, saying it remains open to other nations joining. The agreement has emerged alongside broader regional tensions, including Iran's ongoing demands around the Strait of Hormuz and its insistence that reopening the waterway is tied to concessions from the United States. The story continues to develop as neighboring countries and outside powers assess the pact's implications for the wider Middle East.
3 developments over 4 days
2 soldiers killed in Lebanon in the first Israeli deaths since June truce with Hezbollah
The Israeli military says two soldiers have died in an explosion in southern Lebanon
Israel rejects Trump's Gaza plan, more details emerge on the Strait of Hormuz and other Mideast news
Israel’s prime minister is rejecting President Donald Trump’s announced deal for Gaza and says Israeli forces won’t withdraw from the Palestinian territory until Hamas disarms
Iran won't reopen Strait of Hormuz without US concessions and other Mideast developments
Iran says talks with Oman to reopen the Strait of Hormuz are progressing, while also stressing that resuming traffic is tied to U.S. concessions in broader negotiations between the two countries