MORE than 50 Saudi Arabian-backed military commanders have been killed as the battle for control of Yemen’s oil-rich province of Marib continues, local media reported today.

The high-ranking officials were fighting with forces loyal to former Yemeni president Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, ousted in a popular uprising in 2015.

According to Yemeni news website al-Khabar, Yemeni sources said that clashes have intensified in Marib in recent weeks with “fear and anxiety among Saudi mercenaries” due to the losses.

Intelligence forces have infiltrated the ranks of the military and security forces of the Saudi-backed militia, allowing them to monitor their movements and obtain sensitive information, sources reported.

At least 53 pro-Hadi commanders, including Major General Nasser al-Zubiani, have been killed in recent months, according to sources close to the Saudi-led coalition.

Houthi forces have continued their advance on Marib, with a major offensive launched in February. The north Yemen governorate is seen as the last remaining stronghold of the Hadi government forces.

A Saudi-led coalition — backed by Britain, France and the US — launched a bombing campaign in March 2015 which has pushed Yemen to the brink of the world’s worst famine in more than a century.