Riyadh: A gesture by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) during former U.S. President Donald Trump's recent visit to the Gulf has captured global attention. The viral moment shows MBS placing his hands on his chest as a sign of gratitude after Trump announced the lifting of sanctions against Syria.
The emotional gesture quickly gained traction on social media and is now being considered as the basis for a new global emoji. Saudi software engineer Ali Al-Mutairi has formally submitted a proposal to the Unicode Consortium to create an emoji inspired by the Crown Prince’s viral moment.
“It was a sincere moment that resonated globally. I believe such an expression of heartfelt gratitude deserves a place in the visual language of our time,” said Al-Mutairi. He added that this gesture is now used widely to express deep appreciation in various human contexts.
Al-Mutairi emphasized that the proposed emoji represents values of gratitude and respect rooted in Saudi and Gulf cultures and aligns with evolving digital expressions in the region. The design has been submitted following the official standards of the Unicode Consortium.
“Just as global emojis represent Japanese kimonos, Indian saris, or Russian matryoshka dolls, it’s time to include symbols of Saudi and Gulf cultures,” he added.
The proposal is currently under consideration by Unicode. One of Al-Mutairi’s tweets regarding the emoji received over 3.2 million views in just 24 hours. For him, ensuring global accessibility and cultural recognition through this emoji is a top priority.
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