For real, I feel bad for men in the parts of the (western) world where skirts/dresses for men are not widely socially accepted. Anatomically speaking, it would make more sense for men to wear skirts, and women pants, I think.
Apart from that, I wish everyone could just wear whatever the hell they want, it’s just a piece of fabric. It really shouldn’t be that big of a deal.
I would wear the white Arab robe, thoub, in Arizona's 110° F heat without even a shred of remorse. Maybe climate change could also bring back Greek togas.
This Snopes article says it's real, citing this Telegraph article (archived version) that features another photo of the same troops. What's weird is that the articles tell slightly different stories. The Snopes article says the original photograph's caption describes it as a Christmas charity performance, while the Telegraph article says they were doing a drag show to entertain themselves. Still, the photos seem to be real.
Drag is a Christmas event for some reason in the UK (pantomime). It's not even that modern either, it's been done for hundreds of years. It could be that both statements were true; a charity event that was also entertainment.