'Saudi Lives Matter': Saudis try to turn social media from blue to green

Saudi social media users are trying to turn social media green "for Saudi Arabia".

The campaign comes a little over a week after Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and other social media platforms became awash with the same dark shade of blue in solidarity with Sudan.

That particular shade was chosen to honour the memory of Mohammed Mattar, one of the more than one hundred people brutally massacred by the Sudanese armed forces two weeks ago.

The #BlueForSudan campaign swept the globe, powered by diaspora Sudanese who wanted to raise awareness of the ongoing violence perpetrated by the armed forces, the struggle of peaceful protesters for a civil state, and an ongoing internet blackout in Sudan.

But why are Saudi social media users calling for the internet to turn #GreenForSaudi?

They certainly aren't trying to raise awareness of an underreported revolution or honour the memory of a murdered young man. Many instead pointed to regional turbulence and the kingdom's rivarly with Iran.

The social media user who seems to have sparked the trend, Abdullah Alharthi, tweeted out a variety of green images overlayed with Saudi symbols, saying: "With my respect for the Sudanese people, but Saudi Arabia deserves our solidarity as well... I am in solidarity with my patriot."

Green is the colour of the Saudi flag, chosen as it has historical significance in Islam.

Two of the images - green backgrounds overlayed with the silhouette of Saudi Arabia - originate, just like the hashtag, in #BlueForSudan. Social media users have also adopted blue background images with an overlayed silhouette of Sudan, in addition to plain blue.

In response to one #BlueForSudan tweet, one social media replied: "Saudi Arabia and its martyrs are more important".

Another added: "There is no solidarity or belonging, other than to my country."

Not all Saudis have been impressed with the campaign.
"Hey dumbass im saudi & i love my country more than the next person but there's a f**ing massacre going on in sudan so please take ur attention seeking ass elsewhere," said one Twitter user. "Have some f**king respect for the people who are suffering right now."

Others have compared the #GreenForSaudi social media users to those who say "All Lives Matter" in response to "Black Lives Matter".

"No," one user countered. "It's the equivalent of White Lives Matter."

Social media users were quick to point to the role of Saudi Arabia and its ally the UAE in backing the military junta responsible for the massacre and ongoing crackdown.

Others also wondered why Saudis could make a plea for solidarity like Sudanese protesters when their army was at the helm of the coalition war in Yemen.