Smoke rises after an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition on an army base in Sanaa, Yemen, Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2015.

Forces loyal to exiled President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi have started a military operation aimed at retaking the central Yemeni province of Marib from the Iranian-backed Houthi militias, according to Al Arabiya News Channel.

Popular Resistance units, backed by the Saudi-led coalition, started the operation early Sunday with the help of the Yemeni army.

According to Al Arabiya News Channel, Houthis have withdrew from some areas in Marib as a result of intensive bombing from the coalition.

In the north of the province, dozens of Houthis were killed after an attack led by the Popular Resistance and the national army.

Meanwhile, in the portal city of Hodeida, the Arab coalition targeted Houthi militia positions leading to the killing of seven of their members.

The coalition also hit Houthis in Yemen’s central province of al-Bayda, according to the channel.

Since late March, an Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia has bombed Iranian-backed Houthi militias and forces allied to deposed leader Ali Abdullah Saleh.