The UAE has deployed an advanced Israeli-made military radar system in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region to defend Bosaso Airport from potential Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) drone or missile attacks, according to sources cited by Middle East Eye (MEE).
The radar, the ELM-2084 3D AESA system, was installed earlier this year near the airport, as indicated by satellite imagery dated March 2025.
Abu Dhabi is reportedly using Bosaso Airport to supply Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been engaged in a brutal two-year war with the Sudanese military. Large cargo aircraft have regularly transported weapons and ammunition from Bosaso to Sudan, with some days seeing up to five major shipments. This comes amid an ongoing genocide lawsuit filed by Sudan against the UAE at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over alleged support for the RSF – which are claims the UAE denies.
The radar installation followed the RSF’s loss of most of Khartoum in early March and is seen as part of the UAE’s efforts to safeguard its operations in Puntland. One source suggested the radar might have been deployed as early as late 2024, although this has not been independently verified.
Somali national authorities have remained conspicuously silent about the UAE’s military presence. Puntland’s President Said Abdullahi Deni allegedly authorized the UAE’s activities without approval from Somalia’s federal government or the Puntland parliament. Two Somali sources called it a “secret deal,” with even top Puntland officials unaware of its full scope.
The UAE has historically maintained deep ties with Puntland, training local forces and combating piracy. Deni’s close alignment with Abu Dhabi is widely seen as a political strategy to secure UAE backing for his potential bid in Somalia’s 2026 presidential elections.
Under Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Mogadishu has opted for silence, likely to preserve Emirati support in the fight against the Somali extremist armed group, Al-Shabaab. Mohamud’s government faces rising security threats and political unrest, especially his controversial push to replace Somalia’s clan-based electoral system with universal suffrage.
The UAE’s parallel involvement in Somaliland, a breakaway state, has further strained relations. Somalia’s foreign minister recently urged the UAE to stop treating Somaliland’s leader as a head of state, reflecting growing tensions over Abu Dhabi’s expanding influence in the Horn of Africa.
