Fatima Muhammad

Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH  — Saudis took to the Twitter on Thursday in a big way and were united in their support for the operation against the Houthi militia in Yemen. All were of the view that the operation by the Saudi-led alliance was timely and all were for it.



All the tweets expressed support of the Hazm Storm (‘Operation Decisive Storm’), which was led by the Kingdom and its allies UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait as well as backed by Pakistan, Egypt Jordan, Sudan and Morocco, and called on their brethren to act accordingly to back and support the Saudi armed forces.



The hashtag on Twitter entitled (Hazm Storm) on Thursday witnessed over 2 million tweets. The tweets included supportive statements of the government’s action and also the armed forces and photos as well as breaking news.



Among the popular circulated photos was a statement warning the public not to share any information or photos that can give any information about the armed forces. The statement noted that such information might be used by enemies. The statement also warned against using or circulating rumors and false information.



Despite the varied backgrounds, Saudis stood as one behind ‘Operation Decisive Storm’ and called and prayed for a quick and decisive victory.



Lawyer Adnan Al-Saleh wrote on his Twitter account that this storm has brought glory to the Arab nation. He added that Yemen and the region will enjoy peace and security after this.



Ali Aldufairi, a media person, created a hashtag in which he and many others called on adding Yemen to the GCC Union. This move he said is strategic and will change the region and will protect it.



He stated, “We have just realize that the poor and marginalized Yemen is creating problems for itself and us.”



Some tweets also revived memories of the 2009 war against Houthis. Some circulated photos of the Border Guards who died back then, and stated that they shall not be forgotten in the people’s prayers.



Meanwhile GACA has permanently stopped international and local flights that are going to or from airports in the south region. These include: Jazan, Najran, Abha, Bisha, Wadi Al-Dawasir and Sharoura.



The Tadawul also closed Thursday at 8,903 points. Earlier this week it stopped at 9,350 points. During the first session on Thursday the stock market witnessed a drop of 3%. However, this improved toward the final session by 0.4%.



Oil prices also increased by $2 to $3 following the announcement of ‘Operation Decisive Storm’.



Muhammad ibn Furaihan, a financial analyst, indicated that traders have overcome the psychological effect. Further he added that there are two promising indicators, which are likely to positively affect the stock market. The first is the decision to impose taxes on empty lands the second is the foreign investments expected to join the market soon.



He called on the government to buy and participate in the stock market to create confidence among traders.