Sanaa, Aug 31 (IANS): At least 11 soldiers of the pro-government Yemeni forces were killed as the Houthi rebels launched intensified attacks against the country's oil-rich province of Marib, a military official said.

The official told Xinhua news agency that "the Houthi militia began launching coordinated and intensified armed attacks against various areas" of the province on Monday.

The official clarified that the intense and simultaneous attacks targeted the pro-government forces stationed in Marib's southern and western areas, particularly in Sirwah district.

He confirmed that the pro-government forces backed by local tribal fighters managed to repulse most of the Houthi attacks, and that the group's gunmen made limited progress in Sirwah district.

The Yemeni official indicated that the battles are still going on between the two warring sides, on most of the fighting fronts in Marib, various heavy weapons are used, while the Saudi Arabia-led coalition launched several airstrikes against the Houthis.

No information, however, was given about casualties among the fighters of the Houthi rebel group during the exchange of fire with pro-government forces in Marib.

The Houthis began in February a major offensive on Marib in an attempt to seize control of the oil-rich province, the government's last northern stronghold.

Yemen's civil war flared up in late 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized control of much of the country's north and forced the internationally recognised government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of the capital Sanaa.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in the Yemeni conflict in March 2015 to support Hadi's government.