Latest from the Middle East as countries form defense agreement and Iran refuses to open strait

WBUR

Published August 10, 2026 at 12:03 PM EDT

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey have signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, and Iran says it won’t open the Strait of Hormuz without U.S. concessions.

Host Scott Tong gets the latest on the Middle East from Here & Now security analyst Jim Walsh, senior research associate with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Security Studies program.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

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