CAIRO (AP) — The Arab League says it has postponed a meeting of defense ministers to ratify a protocol for a new joint military force to intervene in regional hot spots.

The Cairo-based organization says in a Wednesday press statement that members requesting the meeting be postponed include Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq. The Arab League says members will decide later on a new date for the meeting, which was originally scheduled for Thursday.

An ad hoc Saudi-led coalition has been launching airstrikes against Shiite rebels in Yemen since March. Experts say a joint force would have difficulty reaching consensus on intervention in cases like Libya, where different Arab countries support rival parties.