Saudi anime series airs on Japan TV for first time

The first episode of Kanz al-Hattab (Woodcutter's Treasure) aired on TV Tokyo on Sunday.

"We are delighted that the first episode of The Woodcutter's Treasure will be shown for the first time on Japanese television, even prior to airing it in the Arab world," a senior TV Tokyo producer told SPA.

"It's a global story that reminds us of the fascinating ancient tales from Japanese history," he added.

The anime is a joint production between Japan's Toei Animation and Saudi Arabia's Manga Productions.

It will run for 13 episodes, with each 20-minute-long episode is based on Saudi folklore. The show has been dubbed in both the Arabic and Japanese languages.

Japanese animation has long been popular in the Middle East with many programmes being broadcast on local television since the 1970s.

Shows such as Captain Tsubasa - known in the region as Captain Majid - and Grendizer have become part of Arab youth popular culture.

Last year, Saudi Arabia held its first Comic-Con pop culture festival, drawing in thousands of young people to the rare mixed-gender event.

Some conservative social media users at the time condemned the event as "sinful and evil".

In February, anime fans in war-torn Iraq flocked to the country's annual festival celebrating Japanese animation and comic book culture.