ADEN, Yemen, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- A prominent commander of the armed forces loyal to the Saudi-backed Yemeni government was injured Friday in fighting with the Iranian-backed Shiite Houthi rebels in the Red Sea coast city of Hodeidah, local sources told Xinhua.

A government official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that Brigadier Nabil Mashoshi, commander of the elite forces backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), was seriously injured during an anti-Houthi military operation in Hodeidah.

"Brigadier Mashoshi was injured while leading his troops in an operation against the Houthi-held sites in Hodeidah's district of Durayhmi," the source said.

A medical official confirmed to Xinhua that "Mashoshi was transferred immediately via a plane to receive treatment at a UAE-manned military base in Eritrea."

The source said that two other officers and a number of pro-government soldiers were also injured during the same anti-Houthi military operation in Hodeidah.

Fighting is still going on in different areas of Hodeidah amid intensified airstrikes launched by the Saudi-led coalition coalition.

Scores of militants belonging to the Houthi group were either killed or injured due to the massive Saudi-led airstrikes carried out during the past two days in Hodeidah, according to local sources.

In recent days, the Yemeni government seeks to expel the Houthi rebels out of the strategic port city of Hodeidah militarily despite warnings issued by international humanitarian agencies.

The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since the Iranian-backed Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country militarily and seized all northern provinces, including capital Sanaa, in 2014.

Saudi Arabia leads an Arab military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after Iran-backed Houthi rebels forced him into exile.

The United Nations has listed Yemen as the world's number one humanitarian crisis, with seven million Yemenis on the brink of famine and cholera causing more than 2,000 deaths.