According to Yemeni media reports, a handful of Ansarullah fighters pushed deep into Saudi territories in Asir region on Wednesday, and established control over a major military base in the area.

Large groups of the Saudi soldiers were killed in the process of the operation, while they were fleeing the Yemeni forces’ fire.

Separately on Wednesday, Yemeni forces gained control over the al-Qarn and Dafinah villages in al-Khobe district, located 967 kilometers (601 miles) southwest of Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, following fierce exchanges of gunfire with Saudi troops there.

Tens of Saudi soldiers lost their lives during the bloody clashes, and scores of others sustained gunshot wounds.

A military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said recent attacks came after Saudi fighter jets carried out a raft of airstrikes against the positions of the Yemeni forces in the villages as part of attempts to retake them.

Yemeni forces have stepped up their retaliatory strikes against Saudi Arabia in response to the intensification of the military campaign by Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia launched its military campaign in Yemen in late March after former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi fled to the kingdom in the face of Houthi advances.

According to the UN, more than 10,000 people have been killed and over 16,000 others injured since the attacks began. The war has also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country’s facilities and infrastructure.