Sanaa Accuses Pakistan of Bombing Yemen Alongside Saudi Arabia, Warns of Serious Consequences

SANAA (Terror Monitor) — Yemen’s Sanaa-based government has accused Pakistan’s military of participating in Saudi-led airstrikes against Yemeni territory, warning that the alleged involvement of Pakistani fighter jets could seriously damage relations between the two countries.

Dr. Omar Al-Bukhaiti, Acting Minister of Information in the Sanaa government, made the allegation in an official letter sent on Tuesday, November 10, to Pakistan’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar.

According to the Sanaa-based Yemen News Agency (Saba), Al-Bukhaiti said Pakistani warplanes had participated in airstrikes against Yemen on Friday, November 6, alongside Saudi forces.

He described the alleged participation as a dangerous escalation and a violation of Yemen’s sovereignty, warning that Islamabad would bear responsibility for the consequences of its military involvement, particularly any civilian casualties resulting from the attacks.

Al-Bukhaiti said the reported involvement of the Pakistani military alongside Saudi Arabia was unacceptable and could have serious repercussions for relations between the Yemeni and Pakistani peoples.

He nevertheless emphasized that Sanaa wished to preserve the historical and religious ties between the two countries, expressing hope that Pakistani authorities would recognize the potential consequences of becoming involved in military operations inside Yemen.

Sanaa alleges civilian casualties in Saudi airstrikes

In his letter, Al-Bukhaiti also referred to two alleged Saudi airstrikes targeting civilian locations in Yemen over a two-day period.

According to Saba, the attacks targeted a public market in Al-Wazi'iyah district of Taiz province and six civilian homes in Al-Shariyah village in Bani Hushaysh district, east of the capital, Sanaa.

The Sanaa authorities claimed that the two incidents resulted in a combined 74 deaths and 53 injuries, with women and children accounting for most of the casualties.

The authorities said they intended to provide video documentation of the incidents to Pakistani officials as evidence of the alleged civilian impact.

The casualty figures and allegations of responsibility have not been independently verified.

Reuters reports deadly Saudi airstrikes near Sanaa

The allegations come amid renewed fighting between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement, which controls Sanaa and large parts of northern Yemen.

Reuters reported on November 7 that at least 33 people had been killed and 39 wounded in Saudi airstrikes on Bani Hushaysh, east of Sanaa, according to figures released by the Houthi-run health ministry and Saba news agency.

The Houthi authorities said the strikes hit residential homes and that most of the victims were women and children.

Reuters said it could not independently verify the casualty figures or the account of the attacks. Saudi Arabia's Center for International Communication said it was investigating the report.

A hospital director in Sanaa told Reuters that rescuers and medical personnel were also among those affected, while several wounded people had been admitted with critical injuries.

The November 7 attacks were among the deadliest reported since fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis resumed in July, ending a period of relative calm under the 2022 UN-brokered truce.

Pakistan's military commitments to Saudi Arabia

The allegations also come amid expanding military and security cooperation between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, particularly following the signing of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement involving Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye on August 7.

Under the agreement, an attack on one member is to be treated as an attack on all three. The countries have described the arrangement as defensive and aimed at strengthening collective security and military cooperation.

Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said in September that Islamabad would make whatever means were available to it accessible to Saudi Arabia for its defence against Houthi attacks.

Speaking to reporters in Rome on September 30, Asif declined to confirm whether Pakistani forces had already participated in airstrikes in Yemen.

He said Pakistan was committed to defending Saudi Arabia under the mutual defence arrangement but did not provide details about any operational military involvement.

The Associated Press reported that his remarks represented a clear indication of Pakistan's commitment to Saudi security, although they did not constitute confirmation of Pakistani participation in strikes inside Yemen.

Islamabad previously rejected reports of Pakistani fighter jets in Yemen

Pakistan's Foreign Office had previously rejected reports suggesting that Pakistani fighter jets were participating in cross-border airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

During a weekly press briefing on October 9, Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan described the Makkah Alliance as a defensive arrangement intended to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its member countries.

He said the alliance's forces would not cross into Yemen to launch attacks against the Houthis, while reiterating Pakistan's commitment to Saudi Arabia's security.

Pakistan's Information Ministry had also dismissed an earlier report claiming that Pakistan Air Force aircraft were being used against the Houthis, describing the report as fabricated.

As of November 10, no independent confirmation from Pakistan's government or military establishment had established that Pakistani fighter jets participated in the November 6 airstrikes.

The latest accusation by the Sanaa authorities therefore introduces another sensitive dimension to Pakistan's expanding security partnership with Saudi Arabia, potentially complicating Islamabad's diplomatic relations with Yemen amid the escalating regional conflict.