ADEN, Yemen, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) on Thursday appointed four ministers, including a war-worn veteran who will head the Saudi-backed Yemeni government's Defense Ministry.

Mohsen Mohammed Hussein al-Daeri, who has led several military campaigns against the Houthi rebel militia in the country's northern provinces and had been injured during the rebels' years of offensive against the oil-rich province of Marib, will lead the Defense Ministry, said a statement released by the state-run Saba news agency.

The PLC, which is currently based in the port city of Aden in southern Yemen, also appoints Said Suliman Barakat al-Shamasi as oil minister, Manea Saleh as minister of electricity, and Salim Mohammed as minister of public works, according to the statement.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthi militia seized control of several northern provinces and forced the Saudi-backed Yemeni government out of the capital Sanaa.

The war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced 4 million, and pushed the poor Arab country to the brink of starvation. Enditem

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