Yemen’s internationally recognized government said on Tuesday that preparations are underway to retake Al-Hazm city, the capital of Al-Jawf governorate in northern Yemen.

Yemen’s Prime Minister Maeen Abdulmalik discussed plans to recapture the city on a phone call with the defense minister, chief of staff and the commander of the Third Military Region, according to government-run Saba news agency.

Abdulmalik was briefed on the military arrangements for a counter-offensive against the Houthis under the supervision of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi and Saudi-led coalition leaders.

The prime minister's call marks the first time the Yemeni government has commented on the situation in Al-Hazm since the Houthis seized the city on Sunday. Army commanders have criticized Yemen's political leadership and their Saudi backers for providing insufficient and oftentimes ineffective support on the battlefronts.