ANKARA/ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has delivered a Saudi warning to Iran to rein in its Yemeni Houthi allies after they stepped up attacks on the kingdom, in a coordinated effort to prevent the crisis from spiralling, Saudi, Pakistani and Iranian sources said.

The Houthis attacked the southern Saudi cities of Abha, Khamis Mushait and Jazan with ballistic missiles and drones on Wednesday, after striking an airbase in Khamis Mushait and oil infrastructure in nearby cities on Tuesday, wounding 73 people. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said on Wednesday that Saudi warplanes carried out 54 airstrikes across various Yemeni provinces over the past 12 hours, adding that they would not go unanswered and unpunished.

Pakistan's warning to Iran carries significant weight because of its defence pact with Saudi Arabia and Turkey. While officials in Islamabad stressed any military role would be confined to defending Saudi territory, Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said attacks spilling into the kingdom could trigger a joint security arrangement involving Riyadh, Ankara and Islamabad.

The regional diplomat said Islamabad was seeking to restrain the Houthis before the escalation reached a point where Riyadh could press Pakistan to play a more active role in defending it. Pakistan has an existing security framework to address such regional escalations, diplomatic sources confirmed.