Aden (Yemen), April 3 (IANS): Saudi-led coalition forces air dropped a load of weapons and equipment to the tribal militia allied with Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi here on Friday, a military official said.

"The military aircraft successfully dropped a load of weapons and equipment as well as medicines supplies to the paramilitary forces battling the Shiite Houthi gunmen in Aden," Xinhua quoted the official, who was with pro-Hadi tribal militia, as saying.

"All the dropped weapons that were composed of medium and modern equipment fell into the hands of pro-Hadi forces and there is a fierce fighting ongoing in several areas of Aden," the military source said.

However, sources in the city said some weapons were taken away by the Houthis during street battles.

On Thursday night, the Saudi-led coalition forces launched an air strike on several military sites manned by Houthi gunmen inside Aden, including the city's International Airport.

Security situation sharply has deteriorated in Yemen since early March when conflicts erupted in several provinces of the country's southern regions.

The Shiite Houthi group launched attacks on Aden city, which President Hadi declared as the temporary capital after escaping from weeks of house arrest by the Houthis in Sana'a.

Last week, a Saudi-led coalition started airstrikes on Houthi targets in Sana'a and other cities, saying the multinational action was to protect President Hadi's legitimacy and force the Houthis to retreat from cities it seized since September 2014.