PDB Afternoon Bulletin | October 6th, 2026: Pakistan and Turkey Join The Fight Against The Houthis & Ukraine Hits Moscow

We're continuing to keep a close eye on the rapidly developing conflict involving the Iran-backed Houthis, Saudi Arabia and Saudi-backed government forces in Yemen. Yesterday, the big question was whether Pakistan and Turkey would step in to help the Saudis. Today, we seem to have our answer. According to multiple reports, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey have now activated their new collective defense pact for the first time, agreeing to begin the rapid deployment of military forces and capabilities to Saudi Arabia, as Houthi attacks on the Kingdom intensify. As we've reported here on the PDB, the Mecca defense pact, as it's known, was signed just in August, and its central provision is a fairly straightforward provision, an attack on one member is treated as an attack on all three. Until now, though, that was rather theoretical. We didn't really know what that would mean in practice. But after an emergency meeting in Riyadh, officials from the three countries announced that they were activating what they called "collective deterrence measures" and moving immediately toward the practical implementation of their defense commitments. The Houthis have expanded their attacks inside the Kingdom, as Saudi Arabia backs a major offensive against them in Yemen. On Monday evening, Saudi authorities say the Houthis targeted airports in Jazan and Najran, near the Yemeni border, injuring three people and damaging both facilities. The Houthis have also claimed attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure, military facilities, and other airports, as they retaliate, for the Saudi-backed campaign now underway inside Yemen. So Riyadh now has a clear argument that this is not simply a war happening next door. Saudi territory itself is under attack. And Pakistan appears to already be playing a role. Pakistan Defense Minister Kwaja Asif says Pakistani personnel are supporting Saudi operations, standing with reconnaissance and other assistance. He stressed that Saudi forces are the ones conducting the actual combat operations inside Yemen, but said Pakistan is providing whatever support Riyadh requires. At this point, we don't have evidence that Pakistani troops are crossing into Yemen, or that Pakistani aircraft are carrying out strikes against Houthi positions, but Pakistan is no longer simply standing on the sidelines, discussing what it might do. Turkey's role is less clear; Ankara signed on to the decision to activate the alliance and agreed to the rapid deployment mechanism, but Turkey is not publicly laid out exactly what forces or capabilities it intends to send. There's also a legal issue. Turkey's parliament is not yet ratified the defense pact, and a significant deployment of Turkish troops abroad would require parliamentary approval. The Mecca pact is being activated as a defensive alliance, because Saudi Arabia is being attacked by Houthi missiles and drones. But at the same time, Saudi Arabia is heavily involved in an offensive war inside Yemen. As we've been reporting, the Saudi-led coalition says roughly 100 fighter jets are supporting Yemeni government forces. Those forces have retaken territory around the Obama and Deb Strait and the port of Mecca, while the broader campaign is now openly aimed at eventually retaking Sanaa from the Houthis. Many forces have also announced strikes on missile infrastructure inside Houthi-tailed territory, including a ballistic missile launch platform in Sanaa, and a storage facility in Saada is said to contain around 20 missiles. So there is a potentially important gray area developing here. Pakistan can deploy air defenses to protect Saudi airports, provide reconnaissance to help detecting coming Houthi missiles, and share intelligence to help Riyadh defend its territory. But if that reconnaissance identifies missile launchers sitting across the border in Yemen, and Saudi aircraft then strike those launchers, and the line between defending Saudi Arabia and supporting offensive operations inside Yemen starts getting somewhat thin. That may become one of the key questions surrounding this alliance in the days ahead. There's also a broader regional significance here, because the United States has so far resisted Saudi requests to join the Yemen campaign with a larger direct air operation against the Iranian-proxy group. Pakistan brings one of the largest armed forces in the Muslim world, and of course, it is a nuclear-armed state. Turkey brings NATO's second largest military, a sophisticated drone industry, and considerable experience, operating beyond its borders. For the first time, those three countries now have an alliance that's being activated in response to an actual war. Alright, coming up next, Ukraine continues to take its refinery war deep into Russia, launching a massive drone attack near Moscow. As Key claims more than half of Russian refining capacity is now offline. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now regular listeners of the PDB know that I am constantly traveling, and when you're on the road, a reliable well-designed power bank is an essential everyday item that makes life much, much easier. That's why Ridge's 5-1 travel power bank makes the ultimate GIF, whether for someone on your list or for yourself, and it is true, the GIF giving season is right around the corner. Ridge's 5-1 travel power bank has it all, built in cables, mag-safe wireless charging, Apple Watts charger, plus lightning in USB-C. For anyone upgrading to the new iPhone 18, the charger deserves an upgrade too, don't you think? 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Now Russian authorities have not officially confirmed that, but a Ukrainian war blog, known as Supernova Plus, published a video showing a huge blaze at the site. Reuters could not immediately verify that footage. To understand what Ukraine may have had, it helps to know what that depot serves. Vala Darskaya is a major hub in the distribution network of Russia's state pipeline monopoly transneft. It stores diesel, gasoline and jet fuel, connects to Moscow's main oil refinery and supplies all three of the capital's major airports. Russian bloggers also claim that drones were headed for Moscow's main oil refinery in the southeast of the capital. They say Russian air defenses stop the drones from reaching it, but at the same time they offered no evidence establishing that the refinery was the intended target. Further south, in Dama Dedeva, home to Russia's third largest airport, crews are reportedly working to restore electricity to villages hit by drones. So, how much damage has the long-range drone campaign actually done over all? That's a very good question. Kiev's own assessment is significant, but again, it comes from Kiev. Ukraine's defense ministry says its strikes had disabled 51% of Russia's oil refining capacity. Ukraine's defense minister says analysts from the country's intelligence services, general staff and defense ministry, assessed the damage. But that figure has not been independently verified and Russian officials have not released their own figures on damage to the country's oil infrastructure while that's surprising. We do, however, have other indications of the strain on Russia's refining industry, and they help explain why Kiev keeps coming back to these targets. International Energy Agency known as the IEA. of course it has an acronym, says some of Russia's 32 refineries have been hit as many as 15 times since the war began. In recent months, a Russian refinery has been struck roughly once every three days. For the people trying to keep those facilities operating, that of course means a recurring cycle of damage and emergency repairs. And you can see the consequences in Russia's fuel production and at its gasoline stations. The IEA says Russian diesel output has fallen by about 30 percent. Earlier this year, the attack sparked a widespread fuel crisis that forced authorities to restrict gasoline sales. Some drivers reportedly waited as long as 40 hours to fill their tanks. To keep fuel supplies flowing, Russian refiners are putting off routine maintenance and restarting old equipment that they had previously taken offline. Even Russian President Putin has conceded that the attacks are taking an economic toll. Speaking on the 1st October at the Valdai Forum, which is essentially a gathering hosted by a Russian think tank that serves as a megaphone for the Kremlin's worldview, a mouthpiece, Putin told the audience, quote, they started attacking oil refineries and openly declared the goal of damaging our economy. Did they achieve their goal? Partially, end quote. For Kiev, though, partially hardly captures their assessment of the damage, allegedly losing 51 percent of Russia's refining capacity is a punishing blow to the infrastructure that is critical to fueling Putin's war. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Tuesday, the 6th of October. Now, if you have any questions or comments, and I hope you do, just reach out to me at PDB at the 1stTV.com. Until listen to the show, add free, just become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting PDBpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. 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