Angry protests have erupted on the Yemeni island of Socotra after the United Arab Emirates deployed four military aircraft and more than 100 troops to the famed UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Residents told Al Jazeera that the four Emirati aircraft arrived illegally on the island on Wednesday in an attempt to intimidate officials from the internationally recognised government who were making a rare visit to the archipelago.

Hundreds of Yemenis had come out to welcome Ahmed bin Daghr, Yemeni prime minister, and 10 of his ministers and to denounced the UAE's presence on the island.

Videos posted on social media showed protesters chanting slogans in support of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and a unified Yemen.

Residents told Al Jazeera that the crowds were angry after reports emerged that Emirati forces had expelled Yemeni soldiers assigned to protect the main island's airport.

سقطرى تهتف لليمن بحضور ابن دغر.

شعب نبيل،يعاني ويهتف لوطنه.

بالله عليكم مثل هذا الجمهور ألا يستحق أن تكونوا معه؟

إنه يبحث عنكم.

عودوا إليه. pic.twitter.com/VqUzzW6pcL — Dr Mohammed Jumeh (@MJumeh) May 2, 2018

Located due east of the Horn of Africa in the Arabian Sea, the island of 60,000 people, which is known for its unique flora and fauna, has been administered by Yemen for much of the last two centuries.

But since the UAE entered Yemen's war in March 2015 as part of a Saudi-led coalition seeking to remove Houthi rebels, Abu Dhabi has exploited the security vacuum and tried to gain a foothold in the strategically placed island.

The UAE has confirmed carrying out military operations on Socotra, with local media reporting that the UAE had leased Socotra and the nearby Abd al-Kuri island for 99 years.

The flag of the UAE and images of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan adorn official buildings and busy thoroughfares.

According to Human Rights Watch, Abu Dhabi has financed and trained a network of militias that only answer to it, set up prisons, and created a security establishment parallel to Hadi's government.

Earlier this year, Yemen's tourism ministry warned that the UAE had tried to convince islanders "to vote on a referendum of self-determination", calling it a "dangerous step."

Andreas Krieg, an academic at King's College London, said the latest developments in Socotra were part of a much larger strategy to consolidate power in southern Yemen.

"The UAE see themselves, or want to see themselves in the future, as the link between the east and the west.

"It's very important for them to control trade links which mostly go through the suez canal and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait between Yemen and the Horn of Africa.

"What they've done is found an island that is very strategically located, acts as a quasi-aircraft carrier in the middle of the Indian ocean and where they can control traffic while giving favourable access to countries that are related to them."</s>Angry protests have erupted on the Yemeni island of Socotra after the United Arab Emirates deployed four military aircraft and more than 100 troops to the famed UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Residents told Al Jazeera that the four Emirati aircraft arrived illegally on the island on Wednesday in an attempt to intimidate officials from the internationally recognised government who were making a rare visit to the archipelago.

Hundreds of Yemenis had come out to welcome Ahmed bin Daghr, Yemeni prime minister, and 10 of his ministers and to denounced the UAE's presence on the island.

Videos posted on social media showed protesters chanting slogans in support of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and a unified Yemen.

Residents told Al Jazeera that the crowds were angry after reports emerged that Emirati forces had expelled Yemeni soldiers assigned to protect the main island's airport.

Located due east of the Horn of Africa in the Arabian Sea, the island of 60,000 people, which is known for its unique flora and fauna, has been administered by Yemen for much of the last two centuries.

But since the UAE entered Yemen's war in March 2015 as part of a Saudi-led coalition seeking to remove Houthi rebels, Abu Dhabi has exploited the security vacuum and tried to gain a foothold in the strategically placed island.

The UAE has confirmed carrying out military operations on Socotra, with local media reporting that the UAE had leased Socotra and the nearby Abd al-Kuri island for 99 years.

The flag of the UAE and images of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan adorn official buildings and busy thoroughfares.

According to Human Rights Watch, Abu Dhabi has financed and trained a network of militias that only answer to it, set up prisons, and created a security establishment parallel to Hadi's government.

Earlier this year, Yemen's tourism ministry warned that the UAE had tried to convince islanders "to vote on a referendum of self-determination", calling it a "dangerous step."

Yemen's war has taken a huge toll, with more than 10,000 people killed, millions at risk of famine and a massive cholera outbreak.</s>United Arab Emirates forces have occupied sea and airports on Yemen's remote island of Socotra, a day after deploying four military craft and more than 100 troops there, according to a Yemeni government official.

Condemning the move as an "act of aggression", the official said UAE soldiers also blocked Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr, Yemen's prime minister, and 10 ministers from leaving Socotra on Friday.

"The UAE has occupied the airport and seaport of Socotra island, despite the Yemeni government's presence there. What the UAE is doing in Socotra is an act of aggression," the official told Al Jazeera.

Saudi Arabia has pledged to send investigators to Socotra, according to the official.

Socotra, a UNESCO heritage site home to some 60,000 people, has a 3,000-metre-long runway, ideal for fighter jets and large military aircraft.

The UAE recently leased the island for 99 years and has confirmed carrying out military operations there.

Residents of the island said the flag of the UAE and images of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan now adorn official buildings.

The deployment of Emirati troops on Thursday coincided with a rare visit to the strategically important island by Daghr.

Hundreds of islanders gathered to welcome Dagr on Thursday.

They denounced UAE presence on the island and chanted slogans in support of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and a unified Yemen.

Hadi's government and the UAE are formally allies in a war against Yemen's Houthi rebels.

A coalition led by Saudi Arabia has been battling the Iran-aligned armed group for three years to restore Hadi to power.

Relations between Hadi and the UAE has soured due to the latter's expanding influence in southern Yemen.

Hadi has previously accused the UAE of behaving like an occupier, according to the Middle East Eye website.

The UAE's move to exert control over Socotra is seen by many as the latest move by the Arab Gulf state to spread its influence well beyond its borders.

The island is situated off the coast of Somaliland, where UAE has invested heavily in the commercial port of Berbera.</s>The flag of the United Arab Emirates has been raised over public buildings on Yemen's pristine Socotra island.

The flag of the United Arab Emirates has been raised over public buildings in Yemen's Socotra, an island near Somalia's northeastern coast that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Some locals see it as a power grab at the expense of their internationally recognised government led by President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The Hadi government says the UAE action is an act of hostility.

Formally, they are allies in the Saudi-led war against the Houthi rebels in the capital Sanaa. But the UAE has promoted separatists in the south and now calls the shots in large parts of that region and Socotra.

And it is not just in southern Yemen: the Arab Gulf country has been expanding its military influence across the Red Sea and Horn of Africa regions.

So, why is the UAE deploying troops in Socotra and elsewhere?

Samuel Ramani - researcher at Oxford University and specialist on the conflict in Yemen

Bethan McKernan - Middle East reporter for The Independent and author of the first witness report on UAE troops in Socotra</s>Yemeni security officials say the United Arab Emirates is boosting its troop presence on Yemen's remote island of Socotra in the Gulf of Aden near Somalia, a move they say is triggering local resentment.

The officials say Emirati cargo flights have unloaded tanks, armored transports and heavy equipment on Socotra in what some locals have seen as an affront to Yemen's internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity under regulations.

Hadi's government is at odds with the UAE, formally an ally in the war against Yemen's Shite Houthi rebels. The Emiratis have been expanding their influence in southern Yemen.

A Saudi-led coalition, which also includes the UAE, has been battling Houthis for the past three years to restore Hadi to power.
The United Arab Emirates deploys troops on the Yemeni island of Socotra in the Arabian Sea, taking over key installations such as Socotra Airport from Yemeni soldiers. Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr denounces the Emirati ground incursion and hundreds protest demanding their immediate withdrawal. Local media reports the UAE claims to have "leased" the island.