Bangla Press Desk: Saudi Arabia is reeling from a relentless series of missile and drone attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militia. Now, the Houthis have launched a propaganda war against the Kingdom on social media.
As the custodian of Islam’s two holiest cities, Mecca and Medina, Saudi Arabia has consistently framed the Houthi attacks as an assault on Islam itself. The Houthis are now leveraging this religious narrative to undermine the Saudis—and in this campaign, they have invoked the name of the notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
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The Houthis are highlighting reports suggesting that associates of the Saudi royal family sent the *kiswa*—the ceremonial covering of the Kaaba in Mecca, Islam’s holiest site—to Jeffrey Epstein’s private, infamous island. Through this, the Houthis aim to tarnish the image of Saudi leadership, seeking to portray them as corrupt and unfit to serve as guardians of the Islamic faith. They have initiated this propaganda war in an effort to garner greater international support.
In contrast to Saudi Arabia’s claims, the Houthis are positioning themselves as the true defenders of Islam.
Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia accused the Houthis of launching drones toward the regions of Mecca and Medina, describing the act as a heinous assault and a deliberate provocation against Muslims. The Houthis have firmly denied these allegations; instead, they have turned the tables, accusing the Saudi monarchy of religious betrayal.
Houthi President Mahdi al-Mashat stated that those who provided the *kiswa* of the Kaaba to Epstein are the very ones targeting Mecca.
This narrative has since echoed throughout the Houthi-controlled media network. This included commentary from a Yemeni comedian with over 270,000 followers on the X platform, as well as songs by a traditional musician. Mohammed Al-Basha—a Yemen expert, founder of the risk consultancy firm Basha Report, and an observer of the group for over 20 years—told The New York Times that the group’s communication apparatus has evolved from what was once a "two-man operation" into a highly organized media system.
"They are very well-connected," Al-Basha noted, adding that the Houthi network now spans television channels, websites, radio stations, newspapers, email campaigns, and both official and unofficial social media accounts. Alongside this, there is a "brigade" of cultural influencers. While this network of supporters is ideologically aligned with the group and its fellow Iranian-backed allies, they are not always compensated for their efforts; rather, they help disseminate content that aligns with the Houthi ideology.
BP/TD
