JEDDAH: After the destructive earthquake that recently hit Syria and Turkiye, Emirati journalist Monther Al-Muzaki Al-Shamsi went to Syria to cover the disaster, where he met families and children who had been affected by the disaster.
In a video that went viral with over 2.3 million views, which Al-Shamsi posted on Feb. 16 to his Twitter account, the journalist asked these kids about their dreams.
Among the group was Rabea Shaheen, a Syrian kid of about 10 years old, who captured the public’s attention with his wide smile and optimism despite the loss he and his family experienced.
Shaheen said that he would love to meet the players of Al-Nassr club, especially the legendary Cristiano Ronaldo, the Saudi club’s superstar.
Without hesitation, Shaheen said that he would love to take his parents with him before remembering that his father had passed away as he fought to hold back tears behind his smile.
Al-Shamsi told Shaheen, “One day, your dream will come true. You will get to go to the stadium and take the people you love with you, where you will see Ronaldo, and perhaps he will give you one of Al-Nassr’s club T-shirts,” to which Shaheen replied, “Ameen.”
The touching story reached Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the Kingdom’s General Entertainment Authority, who, moved by Shaheen’s experience, invited the boy and his mother to visit so he could make his dream come true.
Alalshikh replied to Al-Shamsi’s video and said in a message he posted to his official Twitter account: “My kid, you and your mother are more than welcome to come and visit.”
His tweet received over 8 million views.
Moayad Al-Thagafi, a Saudi doctor and social media influencer commented: “May God reward you for your generosity. We are so excited to see Shaheen’s happiness once you make his wish come true.”
Loay Al-Shareef, another Saudi social media influencer, said that Alalshikh’s gesture was “not surprising at all,” as the chairman is known for his generosity, having an extensive record in humanitarian donations inside and outside the Kingdom.
In November last year, Alalshikh bought a painting created by autistic youths in Saudi Arabia for SR200,000 ($53,000). In 2021, he donated SR1 million to a hospital in Egypt.
