THE NEWS

Establishment-backed Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley upset pollsters in Wisconsin’s Democrat gubernatorial primary on Tuesday, narrowly defeating socialist Francesca Hong to win the Democrat nomination.
The post Meet David Crowley, Surprise Winner over Francesca Hong in Wisconsin Democrat Gubernatorial Primary appeared first on Breitbart.

ICE officers will soon receive gloves that deliver a painful electric jolt to those who choose to fight rather than comply.
The post Nolte: ICE to Receive Gloves that Deliver Electric Shock to De-Escalate Confrontations appeared first on Breitbart.

Colombian rescue workers on Tuesday night successfully rescued a woman who spent 36 hours trapped under the rubble of a collapsed building after Monday’s devastating earthquake.
The post ‘We Trust in God’: Woman Rescued from Rubble 36 Hours After Colombia Earthquake appeared first on Breitbart.

President Donald Trump suggested Wednesday the United States has a military and economic stranglehold on Iran and declared, “Praise be to Allah!”
The post Trump Touts Stranglehold on Iran: ‘Praise Be to Allah!’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Ukraine Defies Vance Warning With Massive Strike On Russia’s Key Black Sea Port, Shuttering Grain Terminals

Did President Zelensky and the Ukrainian armed forces not listen to US Vice President JD Vance’s warnings and request after all?

On Wednesday a “massive” Ukrainian drone and missile strike was unleashed on Russia’s port city of Novorossiysk, which badly damaged grain export terminals at what also constitutes the the last major Russian naval base on the Black Sea.
via Retuers

Three were killed, including an eight-year-old child, and also 24 people were injured in the Wednesday nighttime attack.

Zelensky acknowledged the rocket and underwater drone attack in what he hailed as a “unique operation” to strike the Russian naval base at Novorossiysk.

It seems Zelensky is distinguishing this instance as a hit on a purely ‘military target’ given he did not mention the grain export terminal aspect to the destruction.

“The occupying fleet and all the infrastructure that supports it will not be safe as long as Russian aggression continues,” Zelensky said.

Many Russian assets previously docked at the longtime Russian fleet’s home base of Sevastopol were forced to vacate during earlier phases of the war, given the frequent prior targeting of the historic Crimean naval hub. Some ships have even been relocated as far away as the Caspian Sea in order to protect them.

The attack could seriously impact global food supplies, particularly in the African continent.

Reuters has said shutdowns resulted: “Two of Russia’s biggest grain terminals at the southern port of Novorossiysk have suspended operations as a result of overnight Ukrainian drone strikes, four industry sources told Reuters on Wednesday.”

“Russia is the world’s ​largest wheat exporter and most of those exports are shipped via its Black Sea ​ports like Novorossiysk. Russia’s main grain lobby group warned last month that Ukrainian ⁠drone attacks could shut down grain exports via the Black Sea in the near future, ​pushing up prices and causing hunger in Africa and the Middle East,” the report added.

Novorossiysk is also home to vital oil export ​infrastructure. Kiev has essentially declared open season on Russian oil exports, arguing that proceeds fuel Russia’s military machine.

A state of emergency has been declared in Novorossiysk after a Ukrainian drone attack
Due to the rupture of two water mains, the city’s water supply system has been damaged, and water delivery to residents has been restricted.
The Novorossiysk port area is covered in thick… pic.twitter.com/nWpeIfcf5Q
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) August 12, 2026
We reported earlier that at the urging of Vice President Vance, Ukraine indicated that it has suspended attacks on oil tankers using Novorossiysk. The request was made in late July, but first reported today by the Financial Times, citing Ukrainian officials. 

Vance’s plea sprang from the Trump administration’s worries that Ukraine’s attacks were creating dangerous instability in global fuel markets. There were also concerns that strikes on vessels transporting Kazakhstan crude oil to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal at Novorossiysk were detrimental to American companies. 

So it will be interesting to see if in the wake of this latest Wednesday attack, Washington ramps up the pressure on its Ukrainian ally – or whether such attacks will continue and be met with US silence.

Tyler Durden
Wed, 08/12/2026 – 15:20

A California judge in the Bay Area released an illegal immigrant who had been in custody on burglary charges one day before prosecutors say he murdered a 68-year-old retiree in his Martinez neighborhood.Marcos Iriarte-Valdez had a prior criminal record and was facing burglary charges stemming from at least two incidents elsewhere in Contra Costa County, just east of San Francisco, when a judge in the Democratic-majority county ordered him released.The Department of Homeland Security told Fox News Digital it placed an immigration detainer on Iriarte-Valdez on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2025.”Valdezusper is charged with murder, inflicting corporal injury on spouse, three counts of burglary, receiving known stolen property, trespassing, entering non-commercial dwelling, loitering, as well as convicted of violation of court ordered protective order,” the department said in a statement.FLORIDA CONGRESSMAN MOVES TO IMPEACH JUDGE WHO ORDERED CONVICTED CUBAN PLANE HIJACKER FREED FROM ICE”CA Governor [Gavin Newsom] must not release this murderer from jail and turn him over to us so we can REMOVE him from our nation,” the department later tweeted about Iriarte-Valdez, who is from Venezuela but reported to have Spanish citizenship.”Sanctuary politicians must stop putting politics above public safety. This type of insanity leads to more crimes and more innocent victims,” DHS said in a statement to Fox News Digital.Iriarte-Valdez is accused of murdering 68-year-old Todd Stewart of Martinez, who had lived on his quiet street for about 40 years, during an attempted burglary, prosecutors said.Contra Costa prosecutors previously charged Iriarte-Valdez in connection with burglaries at occupied residences in April. He was on pretrial release in that case when he was arrested Tuesday for allegedly violating a home-detention condition, then ordered released on his own recognizance on Wednesday, one day before Stewart was killed.Prosecutors said Iriarte-Valdez tried to run from Stewart’s residence after Stewart encountered him in a garage, then stabbed and killed him.Fox News Digital reached out to the Martinez Police Department, Contra Costa Superior Court and District Attorney Diana Becton’s office for comment.WATCH: DEM DEMANDS ‘ONE CASE’ WHERE SANCTUARY CITIES DIDN’T TURN OVER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS; DHS PROVIDES LISTDHS said Iriarte-Valdez was legally admitted to the U.S. during the George W. Bush administration but has since been classified as an “illegal alien.”Fox News Digital reached out to DHS for clarification.”The safest way to arrest and remove criminal illegal aliens from our streets is by lodging arrest detainers. Because sanctuary cities refuse to work with ICE law enforcement, criminal illegal aliens are released from jails into American communities to perpetuate more crimes. 7 of the top 10 safest cities in the United States cooperate with ICE,” a DHS spokesperson said, adding that Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin continues to target the “worst of the worst.”A homeowner targeted by Iriarte-Valdez in his April alleged burglary spree expressed shock that the man had been released.FEDS ADMIT FAILURE TO DISCLOSE MURDER WARRANT TO JUDGE WHO ORDERED RELEASE OF DOMINICAN MIGRANTThe homeowner told FOX’s San Francisco affiliate that his 83-year-old wife saw Iriarte-Valdez’ reflection and screamed, “and I think he took off.”SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER”The judge uses his discretion or her discretion, I don’t know who the judge was – so, you know, who am I to argue?” the man said of the unnamed judge who released Iriarte-Valdez last week.Iriarte-Valdez is being held without bail and is scheduled to be in court Wednesday.Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom for comment.

Colorado opened its doors to football fans on Wednesday to get a sneak peek at the 2026 roster ahead of the upcoming season, but don’t expect to see any highlights or practice reports from local media and those who were in attendance.Besides some casual talk around the water cooler, anything related to Wednesday’s practice in Boulder was apparently being guarded like the codes to the nuclear football.When Deion Sanders announced that the Buffaloes would open practice to supporters and media members, the invitation came with a lengthy list of caveats designed to prevent other programs around the country from getting intel on what Coach Prime has up his sleeve for the 2026 season.NCAA HAS NO PLANS TO SURRENDER, AS ELIGIBILITY LAWSUITS FOR 2022 CLASS TURN INTO AN ALL-OUT LEGAL WAR”This practice is open for viewing purposes only. It is closed for all reporting, recording and documentation purposes,” Sanders mentioned in an email sent to reporters. “Nothing observed at practice may be reported, published, posted, broadcast or otherwise shared in any form, on any platform, at any time.”And, the school wasn’t messing around with the secretiveness of the open practice for those who either received a ticket or media members in attendance.The list of prohibited items is on the same level as attending a standup comedy set from Dave Chappelle, with the school checking a number of boxes.If fans thought they could bring in an old-fashioned pencil and notepad, think again.Colorado wasn’t allowing those, either.That meant the only way someone could remember the depth chart, personnel groupings or key moments was by relying on a brain capable of collecting a whole lot of information in real time.Even then, they could not report it.”No note-taking of any kind — written, typed, dictated or otherwise,” the school emphasized. “No photography, videography, audio recording, sketching or diagramming. No live coverage, live posting or real-time updates of any kind.”Before entering the open practice, fans were told they would have to leave their phones with attendants at the gate, with devices returned after the event.Sure, there were some folks on social media complaining about having to leave their cellphones behind, but the overall reaction appeared mostly positive from fans who claimed tickets before the event eventually sold out.COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES ON HOT SEAT: BILL BELICHICK, MIKE NORVELL AND OTHERS FACING MAKE-OR-BREAK 2026For media members in attendance, however, this was essentially a non-reportable event.”We are on the practice field, where we got to be for all morning. Got to watch two hours of practice, but we cannot talk about any of it because that’s the restrictions we have,” Brian Howell of BuffBlitz.com noted.Before the open practice, Colorado’s staff made sure reporters knew exactly what was reportable:Nothing.”If you are uncertain whether something is reportable, the answer is that it is not,” the school emphasized in the email to media outlets. “When in doubt, contact the Athletic Communications Office before publishing anything connected to this practice.”But here’s the thing: This was actually a positive development for those who cheer for or cover Colorado football.And fans can just check out the social accounts of Deion Sanders Jr. if they want to see highlights from the actual event.Most programs only allow media members to watch certain portions of practice, which usually consist of stretching, a few individual drills and quarterbacks throwing against air.So don’t overreact to the restrictions put in place by Sanders.If anything, he deserves some credit for opening the doors to fans and reporters who cover the team on a daily basis. Most college football coaches act as though they’re giving away state secrets by allowing members of the press to watch more than 20 minutes of an actual practice.Heck, Nick Saban was so protective of his Alabama program that nearby apartment residents with views of the practice field faced restrictions on disclosing what they saw.Yes, college football coaches take this stuff seriously.Look, this is pretty standard. We understand what we’re allowed to discuss regarding a practice or situation we see transpire on the field.If someone wants to risk the punishment for breaking the rules, that’s on them. But running to your followers on the message board or posting tidbits of information you know are forbidden is a conscious decision to violate the rules.UNC WANTED THE DEION SANDERS EFFECT WITH BILL BELICHICK, ALONG WITH WINS. ITS GOTTEN SOMETHING MUCH DIFFERENT SO FARIt might sound tedious to some, but this is standard protocol, even if it sounds pretty goofy.”Violations of these guidelines may result in removal from the facility, revocation of credentials and restriction of future access for the individual and the outlet, consistent with CU Athletics media policies,” the school noted.So, whatever transpired on the field at Colorado on Wednesday will remain close to the vest.Want to know how quarterback Julian Lewis looked? You’ll have to wait. Curious about the secondary? Same deal.The fans most likely had a great time and got a rare glimpse of their favorite team preparing for the season.They just better keep what they saw to themselves.Because what happens at Colorado practice apparently stays at Colorado practice.

DNA patterns could reveal whether certain blood cancers are progressing years before routine tests detect those changes, new research suggests.The study, published in the journal Cancer Discovery by the American Association for Cancer Research, followed 30 people with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), a group of blood cancers in which the bone marrow produces too many blood cells.Researchers monitored DNA in the patients’ blood and bone marrow for genetic changes, then examined whether those changes were associated with blood counts, stable disease or progression to myelofibrosis or acute leukemia.MAN WHO BEAT RARE CANCER CELEBRATES BY CANOEING 2,000 MILES WITH HIS DOGPeople who stayed stable often had stable DNA, without cancer-related genetic changes. This suggests a genetically “quiet” MPN is more likely to remain stable, according to the researchers, who are based at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in the U.K.Patients whose disease worsened often showed DNA changes years before routine blood tests detected progression, as new groups of abnormal cells emerged and grew, according to the study.Nine participants eventually developed acute myeloid leukemia (AML), but their disease did not progress in the same way.TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZIn some, MPN cells gradually accumulated harmful mutations; in others, the leukemia appeared to arise from a separate group of abnormal blood cells. Similar differences were seen in those who developed myelofibrosis.The researchers also found that hydroxyurea — a common medication used to control blood counts in people with MPN — leaves a recognizable pattern of small DNA changes in blood cells. There was no evidence, however, that the drug causes leukemia. A similar pattern was linked to azacitidine, a drug used to treat certain blood cancers.Three participants had “triple-negative” essential thrombocythemia, a condition generally classified as a blood cancer, yet researchers found no genetic signs of cancer in their samples.The finding raises the possibility that some patients given this diagnosis may not have a malignant disease and may not need long-term cancer treatment.CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTERThe study was limited by its small sample size, and the findings show associations rather than establishing cause and effect.In an interview with Fox News Digital, Abhishek Chilkulwar, M.D., an oncologist with Orlando Health, noted that most people with MPNs can live with them “for decades.”The doctor, who was not involved in the study, called the findings a “striking demonstration” that DNA changes may signal the development of certain cancers a decade before diagnosis — and that their future path may “already be ‘written’ in a patient’s cells long before doctors can see any outward sign.””More broadly, it’s an early example of what could become precision medicine for blood cancer prevention — using a patient’s own genetic data to predict risk years in advance, then someday intervening before disease progression rather than only treating it after the fact,” he said.CLICK HERE FOR MORE HEALTH STORIES”That’s the direction this kind of research is pointing, even though the tools to act on it aren’t fully built yet.”The results suggest that periodically re-testing a patient’s DNA over time could give doctors a “heads up” that someone’s disease is heading in a dangerous direction, “well before” it shows up in routine blood work, Chilkulwar added.”In the near term, the realistic use of this is modest: closer monitoring, not new treatment,” he said. “A patient found to have acquired a high-risk mutation could be shifted to more frequent blood counts and, if warranted, more frequent bone marrow checks — so if progression does happen, it’s caught earlier.””It would not be a reason to start stem cell transplant evaluation; transplant is a serious procedure appropriately reserved for patients who have actually progressed to myelofibrosis or AML, not something to prepare for based on a mutation that might cause problems years down the line,” the doctor cautioned.The next step, Chilkulwar said, would be pairing early genetic detection with drugs targeting those specific mutations, potentially preventing or delaying disease progression.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi denied knowing anything about former President Joe Biden’s decline on Tuesday, but said those who did know “should have acted” on the information.Pelosi said repeatedly she didn’t know Biden had experienced any sort of decline and told Politico’s Jonathan Martin, “I didn’t know, but I do think that those who did know should have acted upon that information, whatever that means.””There was the staff saying the family knew, the family saying the staff knew, I don’t know,” she added, noting they should have acted sooner. The pair had been feuding over the 2024 race, but Pelosi said in March that they had spoken.JILL BIDEN SAYS SHE THOUGHT JOE WAS HAVING A STROKE DURING HIS DISASTROUS 2024 DEBATE PERFORMANCEPelosi, who was widely considered to be a driving force behind Biden dropping out of the race in 2024, also repeated her denial that she didn’t ask the former president to drop out.”I only said to President Biden, ‘I’ve come to question the polling that you have and how your campaign is being conducted,'” Pelosi said. “I didn’t ask him not to run or anything like that. This is what I asked. ‘I would hope that we could have some other pollsters come in and sit with your pollster and discuss what they hear out there.'””And I did say this, ‘I think the public would like to hear that you’ve had a testing that demonstrates that you can serve the next [term],'” she added.Martin asked Pelosi how Biden responded to her statement. The former House Speaker said Biden said he was being tested in his job daily.JILL BIDEN CLAIMS JOE WOULD BE ‘EXCORIATED’ IF HE DID WHAT’S HAPPENING IN CURRENT WHITE HOUSEPelosi said, “He responded. We were prayerful, you know, Catholic. We’re prayerful. We had our rosaries and all that. And we had a lovely meeting. It was only the two of us, except when he put somebody on the phone to talk about the polls. So, whatever people said about it there, didn’t come from me, or maybe it came from somebody in his staff, but none of his staff was really in the room. He said, ‘I get tested every day in what I’m doing and the rest of that.’ I said, ‘I think people want to see something more in that regard.’”Fox News political analyst Guy Benson told Fox News Digital that her latest statements came across as “non-credible gaslighting.””Everyone with eyes and ears clocked the former president’s clear decline. The gaslighting denials came from partisan actors who were invested in a political outcome, very much including Pelosi. Once their gaslighting efforts died on that debate stage, they feigned shock at the very reality they’d cynically attacked others for noticing, very much including Pelosi. Because their desired outcome abruptly required turning on Biden, the knives came out. And the sharpest knife may have belonged to Pelosi. She can try to deny this, but it’s just more non-credible gaslighting,” Benson told Fox News Digital in a statement.Pelsoi appeared on MS NOW’s “Morning Joe” in early July 2024, after Biden had assured Democrats he was remaining in the race. Pelosi insinuated in the interview that Biden was still deciding whether or not he would remain in the race.JAMES CARVILLE ARGUES ONE KEY MISTAKE FROM BIDEN HAS LEFT DEMOCRATS IN DISARRAYCLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE”It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We are all encouraging him to make that decision, because time is running short,” Pelosi said at the time.Biden’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Signing of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan
Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan have signed a major, NATO-style, mutual defense agreement in Mecca, creating a new security framework among three of the Muslim world’s most influential military and political powers at a time of rapidly escalating regional instability.
The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement was signed on Friday by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to various reports across the international press. The ceremony took place in Islam’s holiest city, giving the pact particularly heavy symbolic weight as well as strategic significance.
According to statements released by the three governments, the agreement is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against aggression. It states that any armed attack against one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against all of them.
“It further provides for the enhancement of all aspects of defense cooperation among the three states,” the joint statement said. The language places the agreement closer to a collective-defense arrangement than a standard cooperation memorandum.
Sharif described the pact on social media as an agreement among “three brotherly nations, united by faith, friendship and a shared resolve for peace and security.” He also called it a historic step and a “shield of peace” for the three countries and the wider Muslim community.
Erdoğan said the agreement was based on “collective deterrence” and would deepen cooperation in defense, joint defense-industry projects, and counterterrorism. He also said it reaffirmed the right of self-defense under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.
The Turkish president added that the agreement “targets no country” and remains open to “brotherly countries” seeking regional peace and stability. A Turkish official separately described the pact as “purely defensive in nature” and “not against any specific actor.”
Saudi Arabia, for its part, also moved quickly to contain speculation about the deal’s wider meaning, saying the agreement does not represent an effort to build a military axis or a sectarian religious bloc.
“The agreement does not represent any orientation toward building a military axis or sectarian/religious bloc, and it is not linked to nuclear endeavors or an arms race,” the Saudi statement said. It added that the pact is aimed at building “sustainable self-reliant capabilities.”
The deal brings together three very different sources of power. Saudi Arabia supplies financial weight, energy influence, and centrality in the Arab and Islamic worlds.
Pakistan brings one of the largest Muslim militaries, long experience in managing escalation, and the unmistakable strategic reality of being a nuclear-armed state. Turkey adds NATO’s second-largest army, a rapidly expanding defense industry, and a growing network of military partnerships across the region.
The pact follows Saudi Arabia and Pakistan’s bilateral Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement signed in September 2025. That earlier accord already treated aggression against one country as aggression against both, deepening a decades-old security relationship between Riyadh and Islamabad.
Officials say the new trilateral agreement does not replace existing bilateral arrangements. Instead, it expands the Saudi-Pakistani framework by formally bringing Ankara into a broader structure of cooperation.
The timing is central to the agreement’s significance. Saudi Arabia is reassessing its security posture after a year of heightened regional conflict involving Iran, the United States, Israel, Yemen’s Houthis, and armed groups across the Gulf and Levant.
Saudi infrastructure and shipping have come under pressure as Iran-backed forces have expanded attacks in the Red Sea, around the Strait of Hormuz, and along the kingdom’s southern approaches. Riyadh has tried to avoid being dragged into a wider regional war, but it has also sought new ways to show that restraint does not mean vulnerability.
Reuters reported that Saudi Arabia has been building defensive partnerships to deter threats while avoiding full-scale entanglement. One Middle Eastern official put the dilemma bluntly: “Saudi Arabia’s problem is that the kingdom’s enemies know it wants to avoid war. They are abusing that.”
The Mecca pact is therefore best understood as a signal. Riyadh is telling Iran and its allied networks that Saudi Arabia is not alone, while also telling Washington that the kingdom is capable of building regional security arrangements of its own.
That does not mean the United States has been displaced. Analysts say the agreement may fit with Washington’s desire to shift more responsibility to regional allies rather than act indefinitely as the sole security guarantor.
Michael Kugelman of the Atlantic Council wrote that the agreement could help Islamabad’s relationship with the Trump administration, which wants to see “more burden-sharing from top US allies.” In that reading, the pact strengthens collective deterrence while allowing Washington to remain an integrator rather than the only shield.
For Pakistan, the agreement further embeds the country in the emerging security architecture of the Middle East. It gives Islamabad greater diplomatic relevance at a time when it has been involved in complex regional mediation and has major economic interests in Gulf stability.
Millions of Pakistani expatriates live and work in the Middle East, and the region remains essential to Pakistan’s hydrocarbon imports. The Mecca pact gives Pakistan a larger role in the security calculations of Riyadh and Ankara while enhancing its image as a serious strategic actor.
For Turkey, the agreement extends Ankara’s influence beyond its existing partnerships in Qatar, Syria, and Libya. It also creates new opportunities for Turkey’s defense industry, which has become one of the country’s most important strategic tools.
Turkish drones, air-defense systems, armored vehicles, and naval technologies have gained international attention over the past decade. Closer defense cooperation with the Saudi capital and the Pakistani military capacity could accelerate joint production, technology transfer, and arms exports.
The agreement also reflects the dramatic rehabilitation of Saudi-Turkish relations. Just a few years ago, ties were badly strained after the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul by alleged Saudi operatives.
Today, Erdoğan and Mohammed bin Salman are standing together in Mecca to announce a shared defense framework. That shift shows how quickly regional alignments are being remade by threats from Iran, uncertainty over American commitments and the pressures of a multipolar world.
Iran has criticized the pact. Ebrahim Rezaei, a member of Iran’s parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said on X that “a paper agreement with Turkey and Pakistan” would not bring Saudi Arabia security.
He argued that years of relying on the United States had also failed to protect the kingdom. The Iranian response suggests Tehran sees the agreement as a political signal, even if it publicly downplays its military consequences.
Analysts remain divided over how far the pact will go in practice. Hakan Fidan, Turkey’s foreign minister, said the agreement is technically similar to NATO’s Article 5, but would require consultations among the parties to determine the form of assistance if one state is attacked.
That consultation mechanism may prove crucial. The pact contains strong language, but collective defense can mean many things — intelligence sharing, air-defense support, weapons supply, diplomatic coordination, cyber assistance, or, in the most extreme case, military deployment.
Most analysts doubt that Turkey or Pakistan would rush into large-scale troop deployments for Saudi Arabia. Hamish Kinnear of Verisk Maplecroft said token deployments are possible, but deeper involvement in an anti-Houthi campaign is unlikely.
“More likely is increased Ankara-Islamabad-Riyadh coordination on diplomacy, weapons development, and technological transfer, with Saudi capital boosting the defense sectors of Turkey and Pakistan,” Kinnear said. That may be the pact’s most practical near-term outcome.
The agreement nevertheless changes the strategic conversation. It suggests the Middle East is moving away from a U.S.-centric security model toward a more layered system of regional alignments, transactional partnerships, and flexible deterrence.
It also carries implications beyond the Gulf. India is likely to study the pact closely because of Pakistan’s new regional leverage, while Israel will watch Turkey’s expanded defense role with growing concern amid worsening tensions with Ankara.
The pact does not yet amount to a Muslim NATO. But it is a visible step toward a Muslim-majority collective-defense mechanism centered on Saudi wealth, Turkish military industry, and Pakistani strategic depth.
The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement may not be tested immediately, and, of course, its real strength will depend on what the three governments do when the next crisis unfolds. But the message is clear that Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan are preparing for a region in which old security guarantees are no longer enough, and new blocs are beginning to take shape.

The post Islamic NATO? Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan Sign Collective Defense Pact as Security Order Shifts appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.