MAARIB, Yemen: Yemeni loyalist forces, backed by the Saudi-led Arab coalition, said they were advancing Tuesday in a key province east of Sanaa, on the third day of a major offensive against rebels.

The coalition intensified its airstrikes against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels earlier this month after a missile attack killed 60 Gulf troops, most of them Emiratis, in Marib province.

Troops loyal to exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi on Sunday began an all-out offensive against the Shiite rebels in Marib, aiming to retake the capital a year after it fell to the insurgents.

Supported by coalition air cover and ground forces, pro-Hadi fighters captured two strategic hills in the rebel stronghold of Sirwah, on the route to Sanaa, an officer said.

“We have pushed the Houthis out of these two hills and entered Al-Zor,” a rebel position near Sirwah, Capt. Zaid Al-Qaisi of the Marib-based 14th Brigade told AFP.

“Coalition ground forces, mainly from the UAE and also Saudi Arabia, are participating in the offensive,” he said, adding that they have been clearing mines planted by the rebels.

Clashes also raged southwest of the Marib provincial capital, close to the historic site of the Marib Dam, military sources said.

Marib city is controlled by troops and tribes loyal to Hadi, but parts of the oil-rich province are still in the hands of the rebels. “If you want to go to Sanaa, you need to go to Marib — it’s the last line,” said Brig. Gen. Ali Al-Kaabi, the commander of the Emirati contingent, quoted in The National Abu Dhabi-based English-language newspaper.

Rebel fighters who had been surrounding Marib city have now been forced into the mountains, he added.