Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said Pakistan stood "shoulder to shoulder" with Saudi Arabia, reiterating Islamabad's complete support for the kingdom's defence following an attempted drone attack on Makkah. "I condemn in the strongest possible terms the dastardly and heinous attempted drone attack against the Holy Site of Makkah Al-Mukarramah," he wrote in a post on X.

The prime minister's statement comes after Saudi Arabia said its air defences destroyed a Houthi drone south of Makkah before it entered prohibited airspace over the holy city. The drone, intercepted on Tuesday evening, was the second Houthi attempt to target Makkah, a spokesperson for the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen said. Houthi officials have denied targeting Makkah.

PM Shehbaz hailed the "extraordinary vigilance, courage, and professionalism of the Royal Saudi Armed Forces" for their swift and heroic action. The prime minister urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint and to step back from the brink of further escalation.

A day earlier, Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, said that the Houthi military escalation inside Yemen, continued attacks against Saudi Arabia and the latest military developments along the Red Sea coast have brought the conflict to an extremely dangerous juncture during the United Nations Security Council meeting.