Indonesians in Saudi Arabia celebrated their country’s 75th Independence Day with a curtailed ceremony held in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. The occasion was led by Indonesian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Agus Maftuh Abegebriel with only a limited number of mask-wearing staff in attendance at the Indonesian Embassy due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) precautionary measures. Indonesia’s Independence Day is marked by an annual flag-hoisting ceremony on Aug. 17 to symbolize the end of colonialism and the establishment of the southeast Asian islands state as an independent country. The event is normally attended by Indonesian and Saudi government officials, representatives of the diplomatic community, Indonesians living in the Kingdom, and Saudi nationals but this year, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, only a select gathering of embassy staff took place. Indonesia, the most populous Muslim country, proclaimed its independence on Aug. 17, 1945, after being occupied for more than 350 years by foreign powers. The proclamation was announced by the nation’s two founding fathers, Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta, who later became Indonesia’s first president and vice president, respectively. In a statement, the embassy told Arab News that King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had sent a message of congratulation to Indonesian President Joko Widodo on the occasion of Independence Day. “Bilateral relations between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia have been going on for more than 70 years and the two countries have enjoyed an excellent relationship, especially in the last few years that were marked by the historic visit of King Salman to Indonesia in March 2017 and the visit of President Joko Widodo to Saudi Arabia three times over the past five years,” the statement said.