Saudi Arabia to be hit by dust and thunderstorms

Strong winds have been forecast for parts of the kingdom

A rainy day in Riyadh. Thunderstorms are expected in Jizan, Asir and Al Baha. SPA

Dusty winds and thunderstorms are expected in parts of Saudi Arabia this week.

Winds are forecast in Tabuk, Jawf, Hail, as well as the Eastern Province and Northern Borders, the kingdom's National Centre for Meteorology said on Tuesday.

There’s a high chance of thunderstorms in some areas, in the heights of Jizan, Asir and Al Baha, the NCM said.

On Thursday, dusty winds will reach Qassim, the eastern parts of Madinah, northern parts of Riyadh and the Eastern Province.

Overall, the wind movement in the Red Sea is expected to bring gusts with speeds of between 15 and 35 kilometres per hour to the north, and 20-40kph in the Gulf region, local media reported.

Last week, Saudi Arabia launched a cloud-seeding programme with the first batch of flights over the regions of Riyadh, Qassim and Hail.

Cloud seeding is a way of inducing more rain by shooting salt flares into clouds. Salt naturally attracts water particles. The particles collide with each other, becoming bigger and hopefully falling as rain.

The kingdom's cloud-seeding programme aims to increase rainfall in the country, which does not exceed 100 millimetres a year.