The Houthis have been gaining new fans across the Arab world, many of whom know little about the Islamist group’s history or increasingly repressive tactics in their home country. Their popularity, which seems to transcend religious divisions, has surged since the war between Israel and Hamas erupted in October, and the movement began its brazen missile and drone attacks on ships traversing the Red Sea.
While the Houthis’ campaign has caused little physical damage to vessels, it has disrupted global trade and cemented their reputation as one of the most active factions in Iran’s so-called Axis of Resistance. The group has drawn the US and UK into combat, although the strikes that began this month have done little to dispel the Houthi attacks.
“Among all of my friends, there’s a completely positive perception of the Houthis,” said a 28-year-old Jordanian man living in the UK. “No one has a critical thing to say about them right now.”
The group has documented how the Houthis have weaponised humanitarian aid, recruited and deployed thousands of child soldiers and cracked down on freedom of expression and the women’s movement. Houthi authorities last month sentenced a women’s rights activist to death over spurious “espionage charges”.
Jafarnia added: “Nobody is paying attention to the fact that while they claim to protect Palestinians from Israel, they’ve held Yemen’s third-largest city Taiz under siege for nine years.”
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