Another Mysterious Airstrip Appeared On Yemeni Island Close To Houthi Areas

File image.

A 2,000-meter airstrip is being built on Zuqar Island in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen, The Associated Press reported on October 20, citing satellite images from Planet Labs PBC.

Zuqar Island lies between the coasts of the Yemeni province of al-Hodeidah, which is controlled by the Houthis (Ansar Allah), and Eritrea, close to the Bab-el-Mandeb strait which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

The satellite images analyzed by the AP indicate that work began in April to build out a dock on the island, then land clearing along the site of the runway. By late August, what appears to be asphalt was being laid across the runway. Images from October show the work continuing, with runway markings painted on in the middle of the month.

The news agency noted that ship-tracking data show that the Batsa, a Togolese-flagged bulk carrier registered to a Dubai-based maritime firm, spent nearly a week alongside the new dock at Zuqar Island after coming from Berbera in Somaliland.

A Dubai-based maritime company, Saif Shipping and Marine Services, acknowledged receiving an order to deliver the asphalt to the island likely used in the airstrip’s construction on behalf of other firms based in the United Arab Emirates.

Over the last few years, the UAE was linked to similar airstrips that appeared on the Yemeni islands of Abd al-Kuri in the Indian Ocean near the mouth of the Gulf of Aden and Mayun, which is located in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait itself. The Southern Transitional Council, an anti-Houthi force backed by the UAE, controls the latter, and has confirmed that the UAE helped build the airstrip there.

The airstripe in Zuqar Island could give a military force the ability to conduct “aerial surveillance over the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the strategic, narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting the two waterways off East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula,” according to the AP.

The agency’s report is not surprising. The construction of a military post with several helicopter pads on Zudaq Island was reported earlier this year.

The Island was captured from the Houthis shortly after the start of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen in 2015. The UAE played a key role in the intervention. Although it announced its withdrawal from the country in 2019, it continues to be active there.

In recent months, anti-Houthi forces in Yemen have been able to intercept more weapons and equipment shipments bound for the group.

The airstripes in Zudaq, Abd al-Kuri and Mayun are likely being used to keep a close eye on the Houthis. However, a larger future role can’t be ruled out. Yemeni media close to the Houthis have already reported Israeli military activities in Zudaq and Mayun.

For nearly two years, the Houthis carried out dozens of attacks against Israel-linked shipping and targets in the country itself in response to the war on the Gaza Strip. Israel carried out multiple strikes on Yemen in response, and recently vowed to escalate.

The airstrips on Yemeni islands could allow Israel to expand its operations against the Houthis in a significant way. They could be even used as staging grounds for raids deep in areas controlled by the group in Yemen.

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