Claim: Saudi Arabia has reportedly signalled that it will be the Kingdom’s responsibility to protect Iran in the event of an Israeli attack.
Fact: Saudi Arabia has not made any such statement.
On 25 May 2026, the Facebook page ‘DMS Global’ posted an image of Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman with the following Urdu text below:
[Translation: “Saudi Arabia’s strong message: If Israel attacks Iran, it will be our responsibility to protect our ‘Muslim brother’”]
The English-language caption to the post adds:
“Saudi Arabia has reportedly signaled that any future Israeli strike on Iran could force riyadh to step in, calling the defense of a ‘brotherly muslim nation’ a duty to prevent the middle east from spiraling into total collapse.”
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check searched for credible news reports stating that Saudi Arabia had reportedly signalled it would defend Iran in the event of an Israeli strike but did not find any.
Moreover, there is no evidence of Saudi Arabia aligning itself with Iran against the US or Israel at any point so far in the ongoing war. The Kingdom has historically been a close US ally and only normalised diplomatic relations with Iran in 2023, after a seven-year rift.
In June 2025, Saudi Arabia called Iran a “brotherly Islamic Republic” while condemning Israeli strikes on Iran. However, even then, the country called on the “international community and the Security Council” to intervene rather than offering direct assistance.
Saudi officials have publicly maintained a neutral stance on the war and encouraged de-escalation through diplomatic efforts rather than offering military support to either side. On 18 May, Trump said that he had agreed to a joint request by the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE to postpone a scheduled attack on Iran. Earlier, Saudi Arabia had refused to allow the US to use its bases and airspace against Iran.
Additionally, Saudi Arabia is unlikely to offer military support to Iran in particular, as the latter has attacked the Kingdom multiple times amid the recent war with the US and Israel.
On 2 March, during a wave of retaliatory strikes on Gulf countries, Iran hit Saudi Arabia’s biggest domestic oil refinery. On 20 March, Iran fired missiles toward Riyadh during a diplomatic summit that was convened to discuss the war.
In response, Saudi Arabia has released multiple statements condemning the strikes on its territory as well as on other countries in the Gulf and West Asia, and warning that it will respond with military force if provoked further. One of these statements, which condemned Iran’s “indiscriminate and reckless missile and drone attacks”, was co-signed with the US alongside a number of Gulf countries.
Moreover, contrary to the claim that Saudi Arabia is seeking to defend Iran, Reuters recently reported that the Royal Saudi Air Force had conducted covert strikes on Iranian territory following drone and missile threats from Iran that breached Saudi airspace.
Lastly, Saudi Arabia has not referred to Iran as a “brother” at any point during the ongoing war, though it has referred to the Gulf countries as “brotherly nations” in a statement expressing solidarity with the latter following Iranian attacks.
Based on the absence of credible news reports to support the claim in the posts, and the inconsistency of the claim with Saudi Arabia’s role in the US-Israel and Iran war so far, Soch Fact Check concludes that the claim is false.
Virality
Soch Fact Check found the claim circulating on multiple posts on Facebook, with as high as 5000 likes on one post. One user also shared it on Tiktok.
The claim, which appears to have originated in the US, has gained global traction and also been shared by accounts based in India, Nepal, Malaysia and Nigeria.
In the past, Soch Fact Check has debunked other false claims about Saudi Arabia opposing Israel on various issues, such as here and here.
Conclusion: Saudi Arabia has not made any statement affirming that it will protect Iran in the event of an Israeli strike.
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