airbase. The UAE and Saudi Arabia are both allies of Yemen, but as a result of Yemen's civil war keeping control of its own sovereign territory has become a struggle. The UAE and Saudi Arabia are both accused of taking advantage of this, Saudi Arabia due to its increasing military presence in Socotra Island, and the UAE due to Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan's efforts to obtain a 20-year lease to Perim Island. Further backing to Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi's claims, UAE based tugboats have been reported to be shipping materials to Perim Island to aid the construction of the airbase. 2015 Yemen Civil War After the Houthi takeover in Yemen, the Houthis moved to capture Perim island to consolidate their influence and gain access to the important trade route across the Bab-el-Mandeb strait. Most of Perim's native inhabitants which numbered around 4500, were originally banished from the island during the period when the Soviet Union's military base was in operation. After the beginning of the 2015 Yemen civil war, some of the originally displaced Perim natives joined the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen to regain the island from the Houthis. The local Yemeni inhabitants launched an assault on the Houthis with the support of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces. The native Perim islanders eventually defeated the Houthis in a violent battle that lasted a couple of hours and led to a power plant being destroyed. The Houthis accused the Saudi-led coalition of being "invaders". The Houthis planted multiple mines in the island and according to the local native leader, they still pose a threat to the resumption of normal life on the island. In March 2021 it was reported that in 2016 there had been an attempt to create an airbase with a 10,000 ft (3,000 m) runway in the north of the island. It was believed that project was abandoned in 2017 with some structures and the runway outline visible. Satellite images from February 2021 revealed construction had begun on a separate, approximately 6,000 ft (1,800m), runway near this project. In May 2021 Yemeni military officials stated that the United Arab Emirates was building the runway. However, based on a statement on the Saudi state news agency SPA, it was subsequently reported the construction was being carried out by a Saudi-led coalition to secure the area. Yemen-Djibouti Bridge Project In 2008, a $200-billion mega-project for the construction of a