Sanaa, March 25 (IANS): The Shiite Houthi militia backed by security forces on Wednesday seized a strategic military air base in Yemen's Lahj province.

The Houthi fighters stormed into the Anad military air base and took control of the entrances, a military official told Xinhua news agency.

The Houthis are attempting to advance into Lahj's central region, about 50 km away from Aden province, where President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi is currently living, the official added.

A tribal source said, "The Houthi gunmen looted all medium and heavy weapons in the Anad air base."

Meanwhile, a source close to Hadi said, "The president is heading toward the Anad air base to visit his forces who are fighting Houthis there."

On Tuesday, fierce battles erupted between Shiite Houthi fighters and pro-Hadi tribal militia in border areas between Taiz province, where the Houthi group has deployed thousands of fighters in the past three days, and Lahj province where troops supporting Hadi have a large presence.

On Monday, Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi called for a mass military mobilisation to restore security in the south, accusing Hadi and the Gulf countries of destabilising the country.

Hadi fled to Aden, the country's second biggest city in the south of Lahj province, in late February after weeks of house arrest by the Houthi group in the capital Sanaa, and stepped up confrontations with the group who took over control of the capital in September 2014.