Muscat: Oman’s Sultan Qaboos Bin Saeed on Friday presided over a military parade to mark the country’s 46th National Day.
The military ceremony at the parade ground at Muaskar Al Somoud marked Sultan Qaboos’s first public appearance since January, when he attended a meeting with the council of ministers.
The Sultan’s Armed Forces (SAF), the Royal Guard of Oman (RGO), the Sultan’s Special Force (SSF), the Royal Oman Police (ROP) and the Royal Court Affairs (RCA) took part in the parade. Sultan Qaboos was received by Gen. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Nu’mani, the royal office minister, and Syed Badr Bin Saud Al Busaidi, the minister responsible for defence.
Sultan Qaboos took the salute from the marching contingents and the royal anthem was played by a combined armed forces band, with a twenty-one-gun salute in honour of Sultan Qaboos.
The parade, which lasted for more than an hour, was attended by members of the ruling family, ministers, advisers, commanders and senior military and civil officials of the state.
Sultan Qaboos issued a royal pardon to 249 prisoners convicted in various cases on Thursday, including 96 foreigners.
November 23 and 24 have been declared holidays for both the public and private sectors in celebration of the 46th National Day, the Ministry of Information announced on Wednesday.
Omanis launched a hashtag entitled “The glorious 46th National Day”, which attracted more than 5,000 tweets expressing love, loyalty and gratitude for Sultan Qaboos.
Fireworks displays to celebrate the 46th National Day were scheduled for 8 pm in Al Amerat, Seeb and Salalah provinces on Friday. Roads in Muscat were lit up in the colours of the Omani flag and the decorative lights are to stay until the end of the month. Traditional folk performances and other festivities are set to continue until the end of the month.
Sultan Qaboos was unable to attend National Day celebrations in 2014 as he was undergoing medical treatment in Germany at the time. In his four decades as Oman’s Ruler, Sultan Qaboos has transformed the small oil exporter from a poverty-stricken backwater torn by dissent into a prosperous state, earning a reputation as a regional mediator.
