He recalled:

My arrival in Viet Nam was the result of a coincidence that, to this day, I still describe as “duyên” - a fateful connection. At the age of 19, I unexpectedly received a scholarship to study abroad. Initially, I had the opportunity to choose between Italy and Romania. But just when I had to make this important decision, an invitation from Viet Nam came along. Immediately, the other options faded into the background.

At the time, I did not know Vietnamese. Nor could I imagine the life that awaited me in a country thousands of kilometres away from Palestine. Yet Viet Nam had already held a place in my heart long before then. For my generation, Viet Nam was a small but resilient country, a nation that had achieved what seemed impossible in its struggle to defend its homeland.

Saadi Salama with General Vo Nguyen Giap (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

I wanted to come to Viet Nam not merely to learn a language. I wanted to find answers to questions that had stayed with me since childhood: What enables a nation to endure immense losses without surrendering? What kind of strength allows people to rise from the devastation of war, defend their independence and determine their own future?

I came to Hanoi with these questions.

But Viet Nam did not answer me through grand lectures. The answers came from everyday life, from the years I spent studying at University of Hanoi during a period when the country was still facing tremendous hardship. I saw resilience in the way people calmly faced deprivation; kindness in the things they shared even when everyone was poor; and Viet Nam’s strength in the ordinary people I met every day.

I thought I had come to observe and understand Viet Nam. But the longer I lived there, the more I realised that Viet Nam was also quietly changing me.

Vietnamese, once an unfamiliar language, gradually became the language I used to study, work and express my feelings. Hanoi, initially just the place where I had arrived, gradually became somewhere I longed to return to. The Vietnamese people who had been my teachers and friends became those closest to me, people who witnessed me grow and mature.

A transit passenger stays only briefly. They wait for their next journey, keep their luggage close and then leave. They may remember a few images, but they do not stay long enough for a place to become deeply rooted in their lives. That was never how I came to Viet Nam.

There were periods when I had to leave Viet Nam for five years, and on another occasion, for as long as 17 years. Yet distance never diminished the significance of the name Viet Nam in my heart. On the contrary, the farther away I travelled, the more deeply I understood just how sacred a place this land had come to occupy within me.

I have served in many countries and held various positions. At the end of each chapter, fate brought me back to Viet Nam. From a 19-year-old Palestinian student, I returned as a diplomat and eventually became Ambassador of the State of Palestine to the very country that had helped shape me into the person I am today.

Looking back, I no longer know whether I can call it a period of study abroad or a diplomatic posting. The journey that began when I was 19 has lasted nearly a lifetime.

Viet Nam knew me when I was still a young man with many questions. It witnessed me grow up, watched my hair gradually turn grey and saw me navigate turning points in my career. In turn, I have watched this country overcome hardships, transform itself day by day and rise through the very perseverance I had once longed to understand.

Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Viet Nam Saadi Salama at the ceremony presenting the Order of Merit Star of the State of Palestine to former Vice President Nguyen Thi Binh on 22 May 2026. (Photo: VietNamNet)

In a way, it seems we have grown up together.

When my tenure ends, I can hand over my duties, leave my office and close the chapter on a diplomatic post. But I cannot simply pack my suitcase and regard Viet Nam as a place I once passed through. I cannot pack my youth into my luggage. I cannot fold away the memories that have accompanied me for nearly half a century. Nor can I take with me the teachers, friends and bonds of affection that have meant I have never felt like a foreigner living in Viet Nam.

A transit passenger arrives and then leaves. But I came, I lived here, and I became part of this place. I am not just a visitor passing through Viet Nam. A transit passenger leaves when the next leg of the journey begins. But wherever I may be, I will always carry Viet Nam in my heart.

Palestinian Friend with More Than 40 Years of Ties to Viet Nam Receives “For Peace and Friendship Among Nations” Medal Having maintained close ties with Viet Nam for more than 40 years, Palestinian Ambassador to Viet Nam Saadi Salama was awarded the “For peace and friendship among nations” medal in recognition of his contributions to Viet Nam-Palestine people-to-people relations. The diplomat, who speaks Vietnamese like a native of Hanoi, said an important part of his thinking and identity was shaped in Viet Nam.

Palestinian Ambassador Saadi Salama Awarded “For the Cause of Culture, Sports and Tourism” Medal On July 6 in Hanoi, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lam Thi Phuong Thanh presented the “For the Cause of Culture, Sports and Tourism” Medal to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Palestine to Vietnam Saadi Salama.