Saudi Arabia Claims Mysterious Air Base on Yemeni Island amid Uproar

in a Thursday statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency, an official said all equipment currently present on Yemen's volcanic Mayyun Island is under the control of the Saudi-led war "coalition".

The unnamed official said the equipment was transferred to the island in order to enable the former Yemeni government and coalition forces to counter Ansarullah fighters, secure maritime navigation and support the West Coast forces.

Mayyun Island, which was occupied by Saudi-led forces and mercenaries in 2015, is located in the Red Sea on one of the world’s crucial maritime trade routes for energy shipments and commercial cargo.

On Tuesday, the Associated Press reported that “a mysterious air base” is being built on the island, publishing satellite images of the center with a 1.85km runway alongside three hangars.

While the AP said no country had laid claim to the air base, it cited officials from the former Yemeni government as saying that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was behind the military build-up on the island.

However, the Saudi official contradicted the claim that the UAE was behind the construction, saying the “reports in the media with regard to the presence of UAE forces on the Islands of Socotra and Mayyun are baseless and unfounded.”

The source added that the current UAE role is focused within "coalition" forces on providing air support in Ma’rib, which Yemen's armed forces are trying to liberate from the control of Saudi-led mercenaries. 

Back in 2019, the UAE announced that it would withdraw its forces from Yemen, in what Yemenis have described as a false declaration over fears of Yemeni retaliation.

Military officials from Yemen’s former government told the AP that Emirati ships dispatched weapons, military equipment and troops to the island in recent weeks for the construction of the air base.