ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has condemned the missile attacks directed at civilian population of Riyadh and Jizan in the KSA.
Noting that citizens attacked were already fighting the menace of Coronavirus pandemic, lauded the efficiency of Saudi Defense Forces for their timely interception, preventing loss of human lives and damage to property.
Reiterating full solidarity with the people of the KSA,Pakistan assured of its support to the Kingdom against any threat to its security and territorial integrity.
According to KSA’s military spokesman Turki al-Malki, the air defenses intercepted two ballistic missiles above Riyadh, and Jizan. Saudi Arabia blamed the assaults (on Riyadh carried out after an interval of one year) Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Spokesman said the missiles were destroyed on Saturday (28th of March, 2020) resulting into scattering of debris n some residential areas.
Relevant pieces published earlier:
Pentagon bolsters US forces in Saudi Arabia on Riyadh’s request
12th of October, 2019
WASHINGTON: Responding to the request by Riyadh Pentagon has said that it was bolstering US forces in Saudi Arabia.
According to Mark Esper, Defense Secretary, two fighter squadrons and additional missile defense batteries were being sent to KSA, for a total of about 3,000 new troops from September this year.
It is pertinent to mention here that Riyadh had asked for reinforcements following the 14th September (2019) drone-and-missile attack on ARAMCO installations which USA blames on Iran.
ARAMCO Attack: US to send troops and Patriot Missiles to S. Arabia
WASHINGTON: After the attack on Aramco oil facilities earlier this month, Pentagon is sending 200 soldiers, a Patriot Missile Defense Battery and four Sentinel Radar Systems to Saudi Arabia.
Following a Pentagon briefing in which Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford announced that USA, in order to strengthen Saudi defenses (after the attacks on its oil installations) in response to Riyadh’s request for support, would send the troops and the equipment to Saudi Arabia.
Jonathan Hoffman, Pentagon’s Spokesman, while commenting on the development, held: “This deployment will augment the kingdom’s air and missile defense of critical military and civilian infrastructure.”
The Patriot battery and the 4 Sentinel radar systems are designed to boost surveillance capacity. The weapons will be concentrated on the south to protect Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from attacks by Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen.
Aramco attack: US sending more troops to Gulf, says Trump
WASHINGTON: The United States announced Friday that it was sending military reinforcements to the Gulf region following attacks on Saudi oil facilities that it attributes to Iran, just hours after President Donald Trump ordered new sanctions on Tehran.
Trump said the sanctions were the toughest-ever against another country, but indicated he did not plan a military strike, calling restraint a sign of strength.
The Treasury Department renewed action against Iran’s central bank after US officials said Tehran carried out weekend attacks on rival Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure, which triggered a spike in global crude prices.
Those attacks, combined with an Iranian attack on an American spy drone in June, represented a “dramatic escalation of Iranian aggression,” Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said.
The Pentagon chief announced that the United States would send military reinforcements to the Gulf region at the request of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
“In response to the kingdom’s request, the president has approved the deployment of US forces, which will be defensive in nature, and primarily focused on air and missile defense,” Esper said.
Earlier in the day Trump attacked both critics who thought the mogul-turned-president would trigger war and hawks seeking a military response.
“The easiest thing I could do (is) knock out 15 different major things in Iran,” Trump said.
“But I think the strong-person approach and the thing that does show strength would be showing a little bit of restraint,” he said.
Trump in June authorized a military strike after Iran shot down the US spy drone, only to call it off at the last moment.
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