One of the things that caught the eye of Atlantic magazine reporter Robert Worth when he interviewed Houthi Political Bureau member Abd al-Malek al-Ajri was his clothing. Instead of the long “dress,” sandals and dagger, al-Ajri surprised the reporter when he arrived for the interview, held in March 2024 in Muscat, Oman’s capital, wearing “a blue blazer over a button-down shirt.” The Houthis’ clothing, dances and accent provide endless material for stand-up routines and, above all, they are perceived in the West as the antithesis of power.
