President Francois Hollande has awarded the Legion d’Honneur, France’s highest honour, to visiting Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Nayef.
Nayef was cited for his “efforts in the fight against terrorism and extremism”, the Saudi news agency SPA reported on Sunday.
Hollande’s office did not make a statement about the visit on Friday but an aide to the president said Nayef, who is the Saudi interior minister, received the honour as a “foreign individual, a common protocol practice”. Hollande received Saudi Arabia’s top honour during one of his visits to the country, the aide said.
Ties between the countries are strong. As well as arms deals, Riyadh has backed in the fight against the Islamic State group which organised the terror attacks on Paris in November 2015.
But news of the bestowal of the Legion d’Honneur on Nayef sparked harsh criticism on social media in France from opponents to the death penalty, many tweeting using the hashtag “honte” (shame).
Saudi Arabia on Sunday carried out its 70th execution so far this year, beheading a man convicted of murder.
On 2 January, 47 people were executed for “terrorism”, including Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, a driving force behind protests that began in 2011 among the kingdom’s minority Shiites.
Most people sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia are beheaded with a sword.
