Web Report
22:35 September 28, 2017
Ahmed Al Khatib, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority (GEA)
Ahmed Al Khatib, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority (GEA)
Image Credit:Twitter
Dubai: The chairman of Saudi Arabia'sGeneral Entertainment Authority (GEA) said in April that he sees cinemas returning ot the Kingdom.
Today, Thursday, September 28, 2017, the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news channel has twitted (at 9.19pm): "Cinemas are coming to Saudi Arabia. Ready?"
The reported reopening of movie screens in Saudi Arabia is seen as part of reforms sweeping across the Kingdom since King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz came to power — and comes hot on the heels of a landmark Royal decree allowing women to drive.
نجهز الـ🍿؟ 😉#سينما_السعودية pic.twitter.com/SK2A5grAuB
— العربية السعودية (@AlArabiya_KSA) September 28, 2017
In the April interview with Reuters, GEA chairman Ahmed Al Khatib, said conservatives who criticised the reforms were gradually learning that most Saudis, a majority of whom are under 30, wanted these changes.
The kingdom had some cinemas in the 1970s but the clerical establishment persuaded the authorities to close them, reflecting rising Islamist influence throughout the Arab region at the time.
