Huthi militias and forces loyal to former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh pulled back from the northern outskirts of Aden toward Lahij governorate, southern the country.

The retreat came after the Saudi-led coalition airstrikes pounded their sites in the northern and eastern outskirts of Aden.

Houthi fighters allied with army units loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh captured Aden in March and April at the outset of the country’s four-month-old war, dealing a blow to president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi, who is recognized internationally as the country’s legitimate leader.

Hadi and his aides fled to Riyadh as Houthi forces, who had seized the capital in September, closed in on Aden.

A Saudi-led coalition of Arab states, has been bombarding Houthi forces since late March in a bid to reinstate Hadi.