ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Yemen's Houthi rebels on Thursday announced that they conducted a "large-scale" attack on Saudi Arabian forces in Yemen following an alleged Saudi military buildup, asserting that "hundreds" were killed or wounded in the strikes.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree announced that the group had "detected large-scale Saudi military mobilizations in their final stages" that were set to conduct an offensive against Houthi-controlled territory in northwestern Yemen.

"Therefore, our armed forces conducted a large-scale and precise military operation targeting Saudi enemy troop concentrations in the areas of Al-Ruwaik, Al-Abr, Al-Thaniyah, and other camps belonging to the so-called First and Third Emergency Divisions, using a large number of ballistic missiles and drones."

Saree said that the operation saw "the death and injury of hundreds of Saudi enemy mercenaries," as well as the destruction of weapons depots and military vehicles.

Earlier on Thursday, a Yemeni military official told AFP that at least 45 people were killed or wounded following a Houthi strike on a military base of the internationally recognized government in central Yemen's Marib province, with medical sources later indicating that 38 government troops were killed.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia led a military coalition that intervened in Yemen to support the government in quashing a Houthi uprising, giving rise to a lengthy civil war that saw Riyadh come under stark international criticism for alleged war crimes and indiscriminate bombardment.

Since that juncture, the forces of the official Yemeni government have cooperated closely with Saudi troops, with whom they share a presence at numerous military bases across Yemen.

Seemingly addressing the government forces, Saree advised "those misled and deceived among our people to leave the Saudi enemy camps and return to their homes before it is too late."

The US Embassy in Yemen condemned the Houthi attacks as "cowardly," saying that they "represent yet another example of their terrorism against the Yemeni people."

The Shiite militant group imposed a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia on July 22, announcing on Wednesday that eight Saudi oil tankers were targeted in the Red and Arabian Seas since that point.

The blockade, which came after the Houthis accused Riyadh of bombing Sanaa International Airport and of perpetuating an embargo of Houthi-controlled territory, has threatened Saudi oil exports, hampering transit along its western coast and adding to the pressure imposed by Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

"We persist in the equation of 'siege for siege' until the siege on our country is lifted," Saree concluded in his Wednesday statement.