ADEN — Senior members of Yemen’s exiled administration flew into Aden on Thursday to make preparations for the government’s return, an official said, three months after being pushed out by the armed Houthi group.

The visit by ministers and intelligence officials follows military setbacks for the Houthis at the hands of Saudi-backed Southern Resistance fighters, which may mark a turning point in the conflict that has killed more than 3,500 people.

The southern port city of Aden has been a focus of fighting since the Houthis first laid siege to it in March when it was home to the government which subsequently fled to Saudi Arabia.

The delegation included the ministers of the interior and transport, a former interior minister, the intelligence chief and the deputy head of the house of representatives.

Local fighters have wrested Yemen’s airport and main seaport from the northern militia group in the past two days, in fighting that killed dozens of people, according to medics.

The Houthis seized Sanaa in September and pushed into Yemen’s south and east in March and April in what they say is a revolution against a corrupt government and hardline al-Qaeda affiliated militants. Saudi Arabia considers the Houthi offensive an Iranian attack by proxy on its interests in Yemen.

In a statement posted on Houthi-controlled state media, the group said it was weathering the Aden offensive, which has been supported by air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition which seeks to return exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power.