There is a Palestinian named after General Vo Nguyen Giap.

In Palestine, there is a 40-year-old man with a special name Giap F Khumayit, named after General Vo Nguyen Giap.

Translator Saleem Hammad (right) with Mr. Vo Hong Nam and his wife - General Giap's son - and the book about General Vo Nguyen Giap that Mr. Saleem translated into Arabic - Photo: T.DIEU

The interesting story was told by the young Palestinian translator, Mr. Saleem Hammad, at the introduction of the photo book series General Vo Nguyen Giap - The General of the People's Heart on April 20 in Hanoi. The event was organized by the Truth National Political Publishing House within the framework of the Vietnam Book and Reading Culture Day 2024. The book was edited by Associate Professor, Dr. Vu Trong Lam - Director - Editor-in-Chief of the Truth National Political Publishing House. In addition to articles about General Vo Nguyen Giap by topic and important timeline, the book gathers valuable images of the General's revolutionary life and in the hearts of the people. The book is published in Vietnamese and five bilingual versions: Vietnamese - English, Vietnamese - French, Vietnamese - Spanish, Vietnamese - Chinese, Vietnamese - Arabic.

Palestinians love and respect Vietnam very much.

Translator Saleem Hammad is the one who translated this book into Arabic. He has lived in Vietnam for 12 years. He said that in his country, Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh , General Vo Nguyen Giap... are very familiar to the people. Vietnam's victory in the fight against foreign invaders as well as in the process of building the country, in the past and now, has always inspired the Palestinian people to continue building a better future. Many Palestinians have special respect for leader Ho Chi Minh and General Vo Nguyen Giap. Some people even named their children after General Vo Nguyen Giap, to show their great respect and admiration. In a small village where people mainly live on farming, very little attention is paid to politics, but there is an exception: Mr. Khumayit.

He learned about Vietnam when he was young, during his time in prison for revolutionary activities. And as soon as he learned about the Vietnamese people's revolution and learned about General Vo Nguyen Giap, he thought that when he was released from prison, he would name his son Giap. He did exactly as he planned. His son has a Vietnamese name: Giap F Khumayit. Translator Saleem Hammad's family also has special feelings for Vietnam. He said that he had won four scholarships from four countries, but because he was the main breadwinner in the family, his parents wanted him to study in the country to continue helping the family. But later, when he won a scholarship to study abroad in Vietnam, his parents immediately agreed. "Yes, if I go to study in Vietnam, that's fine, my parents said so," translator Saleem Hammad said.

The book series General Vo Nguyen Giap - The General of the People's Hearts has been translated into five languages - Photo: T.DIEU

The sad silence of General Vo Nguyen Giap

Talking about his father, Mr. Vo Hong Nam - General Vo Nguyen Giap's son - told some family stories. He said, like every other family in the war, during the resistance war, having to endure separation, his father - General Vo Nguyen Giap also left his family early to join the revolution, causing important moments of his family to not be there. "Like the time he went to meet Uncle Ho and worked in the North, "mother Nguyen Quang Thai (the first wife of General Vo Nguyen Giap) was arrested and died in prison, but my father did not know. Then the war broke out, when my father fought in Viet Bac, my grandfather was arrested and imprisoned in his hometown and died in prison, my father could not tell the story either. Only later, when the country was peaceful and unified, did my father ask me to find my grandfather's grave," Mr. Vo Hong Nam said, affirming that this was the situation of many families during the two resistance wars in the 20th century. And those were the silent moments of sacrifice of the great general whose reputation was famous throughout the world.

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