THE Middle East is broiling. The US-Iran conflict is spilling across borders to Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Yemen, Iraq and various Gulf countries. For now, most eyes are on Saudi Arabia, which finds itself drawn into a conflict it was seeking to keep at its periphery. Riyadh last week joined Washington to target the Iran-backed Popular Mobilisation Forces in Iraq. This followed Saudi strikes against Houthi forces in Yemen in response to the targeting of Saudi oil tankers using Red Sea shipping routes. Experts anticipate Riyadh will launch a wider offensive against the Houthis over the coming days.

This risks turning what began as a US and Israeli effort against Iran into a region-wide conflict with sectarian contours. Forget US President Donald Trump’s February boast that the war would be over within weeks — security analysts now predict an up-to-a-decade-long conflagration.

Pakistan will find itself sucked into this quagmire with each development. Its mutual defence pact with the kingdom has been supplemented by participation in the newly formed maritime defence alliance, which aims to secure shipping routes in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden — critical alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz. Pakistan has vested interests in........

© Dawn