Controversy After Prominent Saudi Accounts Publish “Expansionist” Maps of the Kingdom—What’s the Story?

At the beginning of last year, in early 2022, the Saudi government introduced what it called “Foundation Day,” an annual commemoration marking the establishment of the First Saudi State nearly 300 years ago.

A few days ago, Saudi Arabia celebrated “Foundation Day” for the fourth time. As in previous years, the occasion sparked widespread debate after well-known accounts published maps claiming to represent the territory ruled by the Al Saud family during the First Saudi State.

On the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), prominent Saudi accounts such as “Bin Owaid,” followed by nearly a million people, and “Salman bin Hathlin,” with more than half a million followers, ignited controversy by sharing these maps.

The maps in question depict the First Saudi State as extending into Kuwait, the UAE, parts of Yemen, Iraq, and Oman.

Many Gulf-based commentators viewed the repeated circulation of these so-called historical maps as a provocation against Arab nations, suggesting they reflect Saudi expansionist ambitions stretching back in time.

In previous remarks, Mohammed Al-Omari, director of the Arabian Peninsula Media Center, emphasized that such maps, among others, are recently drawn creations.

Speaking to Arabi21, Al-Omari explained that the term “First Saudi State” primarily refers to Diriyah, which at the time did not exceed 2-3 square kilometers and consisted of no more than 70 households.

He elaborated that the maps were crafted based on pledges of allegiance (bai’ah) received from various villages and regions. Since Ibn Abdul Wahhab’s religious call gained widespread support among several scholars and leaders, historical accounts by the Saudi government considered any region where zakat was sent to Diriyah as part of the First Saudi State.

Al-Omari further stated that these maps are not coincidental but part of an orchestrated effort to fabricate a “Saudi nationalism” that instills in the younger generation the belief that the Saudi state historically extended into the UAE, Qatar, and the rest of the Gulf region.