Arab foreign ministers agreed a draft resolution on Thursday to form a unified military force, the Arab League's secretary general said at a meeting in Egypt, Reuters reported.
The agreement came after warplanes from Saudi Arabia and Arab allies struck Shi'ite Muslim rebels fighting to oust Yemen's president on Thursday, in a major gamble by the world's top oil exporter to check Iranian influence in its backyard without direct military backing from Washington.
"The Arab ... ministers agreed on adopting an important principle, which is forming the unified Arab military force," Nabil Elaraby told reporters after the meeting in the resort of Sharm El-Sheik.
"The task of the force will be rapid military intervention to deal with security threats to Arab nations", Elaraby added.
The draft resolution will be referred to the Arab leaders during their March 28-29 summit in Egypt.
Egyptian TV reported earlier that the ministers asked Elaraby to coordinate with Arab armies' chiefs of staff within one month to form the unified force.