Saudi Arabia and Japan’s time-tested relationship

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Sun, 2020-01-12 02:25

RIYADH: The history of Saudi-Japan relations can be traced to a Hajj pilgrimage undertaken by Yamaoka Kotaro in 1909. The Japanese pilgrim was the first to document his visit to the Arabian Peninsula.

Kotaro, who named himself Omar, left from Japan to perform the Hajj with pilgrims from Mongolia. He was the first Japanese pilgrim to reach Makkah.

The second Japanese to perform the Hajj was Tanaka Ipei, also known as Hajj Noor Tanaka Ipei. He visited the Arabian Peninsula in 1924 and again in 1933.