The Saudi Press Agency quoted an official source in the Saudi-Emirati coalition in Yemen as denying the news that there were Emirati forces on the islands of Socotra and Mayon in Yemen.

The source explained that the equipment on Mayon Island belongs to the coalition leadership, and its goal is to enable the forces to confront the Houthi militia and secure maritime navigation in the area.

He added that the current Emirati effort is concentrated with the coalition forces in confronting the Houthi militias by air defense of Marib, stressing that respect for Yemen's sovereignty and territorial integrity is one of the established principles and basic principles of the coalition.

And the American Associated Press revealed that a mysterious air base is being built on the Yemeni island of Mayon at the Bab al-Mandab strait.

The agency said it obtained satellite images showing a 1.85 km long runway on the island along with 3 hangars.

It quoted Yemeni government officials as saying that the UAE is behind the building of this base, despite its announcement of the withdrawal of its forces from Yemen.

UAE authorities have not commented on the AP report.

The UAE withdrew most of its forces from Yemen in 2019, but its influence there continues through southern fighters that have provided them with arms and training.

The Yemeni Foreign Minister, Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, denied the existence of any agreement signed between the Yemeni government and any foreign country to build military bases on Yemeni territory, stressing that no Yemeni party has the right to waive an inch of Yemeni soil, because this issue is sovereign.

In response to the news of the UAE establishing an air base in Mayon, Bin Mubarak told Sputnik, the Russian news agency, that "this type of agreement requires the approval of the House of Representatives."

An investigation of Al-Jazeera

An investigation by the Al-Jazeera news room last March revealed that the UAE had dismantled its military base in Eritrea, known as the Assab base, and moved part of its installations and military vehicles to the Yemeni island of Mayon.

The investigation - which the advanced research and investigation team worked on in cooperation with a team specialized in analyzing satellite imagery - stated that the UAE dismantled military barracks and transported the Patriot system and aircraft from the Asab military base, and the satellite images also showed military installations on the Yemeni Mayon island in Bab al-Mandab. In conjunction with the dismantling of the Eritrean base.

In addition to Mayyun, the UAE is also accused of seeking to control Socotra Island, off the southern coast of Yemen.

On August 28, the US website South Front - which specializes in military and strategic research - stated that the UAE and Israel intend to establish military and intelligence facilities in an archipelago.

It is noteworthy that Socotra is the largest of the archipelago's islands, which number 6, and occupies a strategic location in the Indian Ocean off the coast of the Horn of Africa and near the Gulf of Aden.