Instagram account @r42r43
Rashid Al Hadad, a 19-year-old Yemeni, is nicknamed the “sexy Houthi pirate” because of the videos he posts where he is seen wandering around a container ship captured by the Houthis.
His resemblance to French-American actor Timothée Chalamet has gone viral on social media. A Yemeni influencer, Rashid Al Hadad, is nicknamed the “sexy houthi hacker“, in reference to the Yemeni Houthi tribe. For several weeks, the 19-year-old man has been publishing videos of himself on a hijacked container ship, reports the British daily Telegraph . This type of commercial vessel has been regularly hijacked by the Houthis for several weeks, as a sign of support for Gaza in the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
According to Telegraphthe ship would be the Galaxy Leader“flying the Bahamian flag and chartered by Japan“. The Houthis seized this commercial boat, owned by an Israeli businessman, on November 19. The Yemeni rebels then released a video of them landing in a helicopter on the ship, before storming it. Rashid Al Hadad first published a video of this ship on Instagram on November 29. That is ten days after the boat was captured.
In the videos, Rashid Al Hadad strolls through the aisles of the ship accompanied by other young men, who also take videos and photos. They all approached the ship, not far from the coast, aboard a small wooden skiff. Rashid Al Hadad always wears the same outfit – a traditional long brown dress and a jacket of the same color – which suggests that he published several videos taken from different angles on the same day.
Rashid Al Hadad describes himself as “ready for sacrifice and eager for martyrdom“, according to Telegraph and reportedly stated that the Houthis “will bomb all Israeli ships“. However, the young man with curly brown hair, who would indeed be Yemeni, would not be a real Houthi. He did not share other videos on other captured ships. He introduces himself on Threads – X’s new rival – as a “media personality, actor and photographer», Notes the British daily. And on Instagram, he is followed by 31,500 people.
Influencer committed to Palestine
The influencer, however, accompanies his videos with committed texts that call for a “Free Palestine“. “Those who love Palestine, react“, we can read. “I hope that my message will reach you, who are for a free Palestine. We will ignite it against Israeli aggression that violates human rights“, he also wrote, according to the Telegraph.
But if Rashid Al Hadad has become viral on social networks, it is mainly for his resemblance to Timothée Chalamet. Which earned him the nickname “Timhouthi Chalamet» or “sexy houthi hacker“. But the many laudatory comments on his physique are far from pleasing him. The young influencer even asked his admirers to stop “rave about her beauty», explains the Telegraph. “I didn’t talk about beauty or anything else, but our cause is Palestine, and this is not the time to talk about beauty», he wrote on X, quoted by the British daily.
Read alsoHouthis claim attack on US ship off Yemen
The Houthis, at war for nearly a decade against the Yemeni government, are targeting merchant ships they believe are linked to Israel, in an area crucial for international trade. The United States decided to lead the response by striking the Houthis in concert with the United Kingdom, and with the support of Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands.