DAMMAM/JEDDAH, 15 September — People in the Eastern Province are yet to recover from the shock of the kamikaze attacks in the United States, the impact of which is adversely affecting the local market.
On the day of the attack the streets of Dammam and Alkhobar wore a deserted look as the residents of the twin cities remained glued to their TV sets to find out the latest on the terror that struck New York and Washington, in which thousands are feared dead.
Although life has apparently returned to normal in terms of office and school attendance, the market is experiencing some effect from the strike.
The prestigious Rashid and Alkhobar Malls, which are normally crowded on Thursdays and Fridays, had very few customers.
Similarly, the amusement centers in Dammam and Alkhobar also had very few visitors.
“On Thursday we did not have even 20 percent of our normal visitors,” said an employee of Al-Hokhair Amusement Center in Alkhobar.
The fast good chains also had unprecedented low sales on Wednesday and Thursday. Banks and money exchanges, however, reported normal business, with no unusual transfers outside the country.
The gold souk did report a marginal decline in sales compared to previous weeks.
The American community in the Eastern Province remained in a state of shock at Tuesday’s events.
“It was absolutely unbelievable.... I still fail to comprehend how anyone could be that brutal,” said Chris Cleary, an engineer in a steel company.
Americans living in the region, especially those in the Saudi Aramco compound, thanked Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah for their pledge of support to the Bush administration and for their condolences.
They also condemned the attempt by some sections of the media to give the event a religious color.
“Terrorists have no religion....Take the Oklahoma bombing: there was no Muslim involved,” said Chris.
People in general also expressed their apprehension over the planned US retaliation and its possible negative fallout on the region and its economy.
Meanwhile, travel agents have said that they have been accepting bookings for the US from passengers for future dates. “But this is only a tentative measure and their confirmation will depend on when we hear about the resumption of services,” one of them told Arab News.
The services were suspended following Tuesday’s attacks.
“We’re flooded with inquiries from passengers who already had bookings but could not travel, and others who wanted to make new bookings,” a leading travel agent said. “It’s also true that some passengers have shelved their plans to travel to the US following the attacks,” he added.
According to reports, confusion and chaos prevail at airports worldwide with airlines canceling flights to the US following the closure of American air space since Tuesday.
An unspecified number of passengers from this part of the world are among those who are reportedly stranded at European airports since Tuesday during their stopovers en route to US. Most of them have been provided hotel accommodation, according to aviation sources.
“If there is prolonged delay in resuming services to the US we will fly them back,” a Western airline source said. “We’re also waiting for clear guidelines on new and tougher security measures being imposed by the US administration.”
The cancellation of flights has also upset travel plans of a number passengers for business, leisure or family visits.
Some of the carriers, which have suspended their US operations, said they were in touch with airline officials at the regional and world headquarters to get information about the reopening of American air space.
Those who have been repeatedly calling travel agents are being given a stock reply: “We cannot give a date or time as to when airline services to the US will be back in operation. You’ll have to be patient.”
