Details of an aircraft runway in Socotra revealed.. Italian website: Emirati influence in Yemen at the expense of Saudi Arabia

The Italian website "Inside Over" revealed new details about the construction work taking place on the Yemeni island of Abd al-Kuri, where a long runway of about 3 kilometers is being built, and this is considered part of the Emirati influence at the expense of Saudi Arabia in Yemen.

Abd al-Kuri Island is about 35 kilometers long and 5 kilometers wide at its widest point. It is a bare and uninhabited island, devoid of natural resources, but it is located near the Horn of Africa, not far from another island, Socotra, and above all, it is located a short distance from the mouth of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, in the Gulf of Aden.

At the widest point of Abd al-Kuri, a long runway (about 3 km) has been under construction for some time. Photos from Planet Labs taken last March showed vehicles and progress on a concrete strip capable, given its length, of accommodating attack, surveillance, transport and even some bombers.

The site said in a report that construction work was initially noticed in January 2022, but stopped and then resumed recently, and that by December 23, 2024, 1,800 meters of the runway had been completed, painted with distance indicators and “piano key”-like markings at the southern end, and the parking lot had been paved.

On December 28, part of the financial section of the runway was still under construction, but its end was already marked, indicating that the pace of work was accelerating.

The site confirmed that what appears to be a camp with ten new fortifications has been built in Khaisat Saleh, four miles west of the runway, and the road shows signs of recent intensive use.

A new pier appears to have been built on Kalmia Beach, which faces south and is protected, and thus is better protected from potential Houthi drone attacks than the pier used on the north coast.

The site sees some form of service site appearing on the highest point of a 100-metre-high hill to the west, next to the northern end of the airport, and that at the pace at which work is progressing, the facility is expected to be able to host air operations within a few weeks, by which time it may become clear for whom and for what purpose this airport, which controls the sea entrances to the Gulf of Aden, was built.

Back in March of last year, the same satellite images of Abdul-Kuri showed what appeared to be piles of dirt arranged to form the words “I Love the Emirates,” but the UAE may not be the only party involved in building what by all accounts appears to be an air base.

During the same period, a US defense official stated that the United States was strengthening “our missile defenses on Socotra Island” in anticipation of a possible attack by Houthi rebels on US bases in the region.

The site stressed that Socotra is the main island in that small archipelago and is about 100 kilometers away from Abd al-Kuri. The site quoted the US military as saying to the Associated Press that it was not involved in building the Abd al-Kuri airport and that there is no US "military presence" anywhere else in Yemen.

unified communications system

However, the report indicates that there is a project to reintegrate Socotra Island (officially Yemeni) into a joint regional air defense chain known as the Middle East Air Defense Alliance thanks to the efforts of the UAE.

Although there is no direct evidence of the UAE’s involvement in the actions that could lead to the establishment of an air base, there is information indicating that Abu Dhabi tried years ago to gain a foothold for military operations in Yemen to support Saudi Arabia in its war against the Iranian-backed Houthis.

He said that despite the UAE's official withdrawal from the campaign against the Houthi rebels, the deteriorating situation in the Red Sea likely allowed Abu Dhabi to resume its strategic expansion initiative in the strait area with Washington's approval.

He noted that Washington may also have an active role in building this new airport infrastructure in anticipation of its possible future use as a kind of alternative air base to Diego Garcia, taking into account recent developments regarding the return of its sovereignty to the government of the Mauritian Islands.

The website concluded by saying, "These projects represent strategic moves away from the public eye, to enhance the UAE and American military influence in the region, in light of the decline in the influence of traditional powers such as Saudi Arabia."