• In addition, 4,100 Japanese citizens were honored, including 1,920 from the private sector and 412 women at this year’s Autumn Honors

Khaldon Azhari

TOKYO: The Japanese government granted 12 prominent Arab figures with imperial orders, decorations and medals of various degrees for their contributions to strengthening relations between their countries and Japan in various fields.

From the UAE, Jordan, Egypt, Oman, Qatar, Tunisia, Algeria and Eritrea, the Arab recipients were among 141 foreigners from 60 countries who were decorated at this year’s Autumn Honors. In addition, 4,100 Japanese citizens were honored, including 1,920 from the private sector and 412 women.

A list of the honorees that was received by Arab News Japan showed that two Arabs were awarded the highest honor, the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, for contributing to enhanced bilateral relations. They are Mohammed bin Saleh Al-Sada, who served as Qatar’s former minister of energy and industry and as the former chairman of the Qatar-Japan Joint Economic Committee, along with Taher Al-Masry, who has served as Jordan’s senate president, prime minister and foreign minister.

The former UAE ambassador to Japan, Ahmad Ali Al-Mualla, was honored with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star for his contribution to strengthening relations and promoting friendly relations between Japan and the UAE.

Egypt received the most honors for Arab countries. Fayza Abul-Naga, former minister of planning and international cooperation, and Hisham El-Zimaity, former Egyptian ambassador to Japan, were honored with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star.

Meanwhile, Abdelfattah Mohamed Ragab, former honorary consul-general of Japan in Alexandria, was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, and Muhammad Amer Muhammad Abdel-Razek, a former local employee at the Embassy of Japan in Egypt, was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Silver Rays.

From the Sultanate of Oman, Salem Nasser Al- Maskari, 73, a former secretary general of the Higher Education Council, was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star.

Tunisian Hadi Ben Abbas, 59, a former secretary of state to the minister of foreign affairs and president of the Tunisian-Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun and the Gold and Silver Star. Also, from the capital Tunis, Radhia Riza, secretary general of the Tunisia-Japan Friendship Association, was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Golden Rays and Rosette.

From Algeria, Nasir al-Din Bin Rashid, a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Oran of Science and Technology, received the Order of the Rising Sun and Golden Rays with Neck Ribbon.

Eritrean Michael Beyene Bairu, a former honorary consul-general of Japan in Asmara, received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon.

Among the honorees from the Middle East, Mehmet Ilker Ayci, chairman of the board and the executive committee of Turkish Airlines, was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Golden Rays with a Neck Ribbon. And Iranian resident of Japan, Shohreh Golparian, a translator and film producer, was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Ray.

From Pakistan, Zafar Mahmood, 67, a visiting professor at the Department of Japanese Language at the National University of Modern Languages (NUML), was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Golden and Silver Rays.

Among the Japanese figures recognized, Isao Ijima, 75, special advisor to both former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and current Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, who is also a close associate of the Arab diplomatic corps, was honored with the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star. Also, among the Japanese was the former governor of Okinawa, Hirokazu Nakaima, who received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun.

Honored foreign dignitaries included former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker and Joseph Dunford, former chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. Both were awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, the highest honor.

The decorations will be given to the honorees at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on November 11, with Emperor Naruhito conferring the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun and Prime Minister Suga handing out the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star.