A YEMENI pirate has been dubbed “Tim-Houthi Chalamet” after his twisted fans gushed over his good looks on videos filmed onboard hijacked ships.
Rashid Al Haddad went viral on the dark side of TikTok after streaming himself taking tours on commercial vessels attacked by his Iran-backed Houthi rebel pals in the Red Sea.
With his brown curly locks, warped fans of the young militant have highlighted his resemblance to the American actor – Timothée Chalamet.
But the so-called “hot Houthi” influencer is far from the glam of Hollywood when he films himself onboard illegally seized container ships and warns the US and UK will “face their end” if they continue to strike his terror “brothers”.
Although he doesn’t appear to actually take part in the attacks on commercial ships, he told his fans that he is “ready for sacrifice and eager for martyrdom”.
The AK-47 wielding wannabe militant has condemned the UK and US recent strikes on Yemen.
“They are my brothers and they are my relatives. We are not afraid of anything, but their war will not affect Yemen, but rather it will be their end if they play with us,” he told MailOnline.
He also added that he doesn’t appreciate the comparisons with the Wonka star.
“Hollywood actor Timothée Chalamet is one thing and another,’ he said. “I do not think about what they say about me on social media sites.”
Instead, he has told his tens of thousands of followers to forget about his looks and instead focus their attention on the war in Gaza.
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“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/Twitter this week.
“I hope that my message reaches you, a free Palestine, and we ignite it against the Israeli aggression that violates human rights.”
Al Haddad started gaining a lot of traction when he filmed himself and other young men onboard the stolen Japan-chartered Galaxy Leader container ship.
On November 19, Houthi militants jumped from choppers, attacked the ships with guns and grenades and took its crew hostage.
They later sailed it back to Yemen as a trophy and opened it up for tour groups.
Twenty-five members of its crew remain in captivity.
Al Haddad’s widely-viewed videos appear to be a symptom of a larger issue – a wave of Houthi pirates posting footage of their raids online as a means to celebrate their attacks and embolden others.
It comes as the US launched a fourth round of strikes in just a week at Houthi bases in Yemen after the rebels attacked a US cargo ship and vowed that “more attacks are coming”.
The US-owned bulk carrier was hit by an unmanned aerial vehicle yesterday as it was heading east along the Gulf of Aden.
It came only a day after the US pounded a stash of the rebel’s anti-ship missiles in a fresh strike on Yemen.
The militia group confirmed that the US vessel was attacked in response to the strikes – and chillingly warned that any new strike will be punished.
UKMTO also reported that the vessel and crew are safe and are proceeding to the next port of call.
Last week, the Houthis vowed “unimaginable” revenge after the US and UK’s large-scale overnight blitz on their military bases in Yemen.
The furious rebel group called the coalition strikes that hit 60 military targets and killed five of their militants an act of “war” as a full-blown conflict threatens to explode in the region.
It marked a dramatic escalation in the crisis that since November has been threatening to ignite an all-out war across the region, which has become a powder keg due to Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas.
The US and UK said the aerial attacks were intended to disrupt and degrade the militants’ threat to global trade after weeks of drone and missile attacks on cargo ships in the region.
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Disruption instigated by the Houthi group has sent global shipping prices soaring which could drive up prices in UK supermarkets as vessels are diverted around Africa.
Who are the Houthi Rebels?
THE Houthi rebels are terrorising vessels in the Red Sea and now their bases are being struck by the US and UK – but who are they?
The Shia militant group, which now controls most of Yemen, spent over a decade being largely ignored by the world.
However, since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war they sprung from relative obscurity to holding roughly £1trillion of world trade hostage – turning one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes into an active warzone.
Why are they attacking ships?
The rebel group has been launching relentless drone and missile attacks on any ships they deem to be connected with Israel in solidarity with their ally Hamas.
The sea assaults have threatened to ignite a full-blown war in the Middle East as ripples from Israel’s war in Gaza are felt across the region – with Iran suspected of stoking the chaos.
However, there have been frequent attacks on commercial vessels with little or no link to Israel – forcing global sea traffic to halt operations in the region and sending shipping prices soaring.
Houthi attacks in the Red Sea increased 50 per cent between November and December.
Their slogan is “Death to America, Death to Israel, curse the Jews and victory to Islam”.
And the rebel group’s leaders have previously pledged the attacks will continue until Israel stops its devastating offensive inside Gaza.
Last week, the US and UK launched joint strikes at Houthi strongholds in Yemen, hitting over 60 targets.
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