Yemeni General Abd al-Rab Qassim al-Shadadi speaks to his troops at a UAE military base near Saffer, Yemen on Monday. As fighting rages on in Yemen, troops from the UAE that are part of a Saudi-led coalition battling Shiite rebels are pushing toward the country’s rebel-held capital, Sanaa. Adam Schreck / AP

An Emirati soldier checks the gun atop an armoured vehicle at a military base near Saffer in Yemen’s Marib province. Adam Schreck / AP

An Emirati Chinook military helicopter lands at the military base near Saffer. Adam Schreck / AP

A soldier from the UAE peers out of his armoured vehicle in the front lines of a coalition offensive against Yemen’s Houthis rebels in Marib province. Noah Browning / Reuters

Emirati Brigadier General Ali Al Kaabi takes a phone call atop a sand dune at the UAE military base near Saffer. Adam Schreck / AP

A group of soldiers trained by Emirati and Gulf Arab forces flash the victory sign near a military base in Marib province. Yemeni troops and Gulf special forces have captured several areas around Sirwah district in Marib since a military offensive in the province began on Sunday. Noah Browning / Reuters

An airman from the UAE Armed Forces gives a comrade a bullet during a flight from a base in Saudi Arabia to the front line of the anti-Houthi offensive in Yemen’s Marib province. UAE and Saudi forces have played a leading role in the months-long campaign to liberate Yemen from the Iran-allied rebels. Noah Browning / Reuters

An Emirati soldier jumps from an armoured vehicle in Marib. Noah Browning / Reuters

A group of soldiers trained by Emirati and Gulf Arab forces gather with Yemeni tribesmen gather near a military base in Marib province. Noah Browning / Reuters