Salah Zawawi

Salah Al-Zawawi (; 1937 – February 20, 2023), or among Iranians Salah Zawawi, was a Palestinian politician and diplomat who served as the ambassador of Palestine to Iran. He was the second ambassador of Palestine to Iran after Hani al-Hassan and held this position from February 1981 to January 2022. He is one of the founding members of the Fatah movement and the former Palestinian ambassador to Algeria, Brazil and Kenya.

Life Salah al-Zawawi was born in 1937 in the city of Safed, then part of Mandate for Palestine. And because of his long service, he was given the title of "Moghaddam Al-Sofara" or "Sheikh Al-Sofara" . Salah al-Zawawi continued his diplomatic activity in Tehran until January 2022 and resigned from the embassy in this year. Salah al-Zawawi's daughter Salam al-Zawawi, who was familiar with Iranian culture due to her long-term residence in Iran, appointed as the Palestinian ambassador in Tehran after her father's resignation.

The end of the mission in Iran On Thursday, 6 January 2022, at the end of his mission in Iran, Salah al-Zawawi met with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. Salam al-Zawawi, the daughter of Salah al-Zawawi, became the new Palestinian ambassador to Iran after her father, took the oath before Mahmoud Abbas, the president of Palestine, on Saturday night, 8 January 2022, and started working as the new Palestinian ambassador to Iran. This ceremony was held at the residence of Mahmoud Abbas in Amman, the capital of Jordan.

Career

Before working as an ambassador in Tehran, Salah al-Zawawi was the Palestinian ambassador to Algeria in 1968, the Palestinian ambassador to Brazil in 1975, and the Palestinian ambassador to Kenya from 1977 to 1979.

Salah al-Zawawi was the second Palestinian ambassador to Iran after Hani al-Hassan. Salah al-Zawawi was the "only legal representative of the Palestinian nation" in Iran from 1981 to 2022. Salah al-Zawawi established a close relationship with Iranian politicians and had relations with representatives of all Palestinian resistance groups.

His title Due to his long-term presence as an ambassador in Iran, Salah al-Zawawi was given the titles such as "Al-Safir al-Avval" ( in Arabic, ), "Moghaddam al-Sofaraa" ( in Arabic, ) and "Sheikh al-Sofaraa" ( in Arabic, ).

Honoring him Because of the 39 years or according to another story more than 40 years of Salah al-Zawawi's diplomatic and media activity for Iran and Palestine, a celebration ceremony was held for him at Media Cultural Center in Tehran on Monday 28 February 2022. The ceremony, was prepared by the Society for the Defence of Palestinian Nation and was held with the presence of some Iranian officials and political figures. In the ceremony, Salah al-Zawawi's sincere efforts were appreciated and thanked.

When Salah al-Zawawi died, many Iranian officials, including Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, expressed their condolences.

Death of his wife After the death of his wife Dalaal Al-A'raj, Salah al-Zawawi buried her at Behesht-e Zahra cemetery in Tehran, Iran.

Death Salah al-Zawawi was admitted to a hospital in Tehran due to old age and illness. He died on 20 February 2023, at the age of 86. His body was buried in the section of Naam Aavaraan (burying place of famous figures) of the Behesht-e Zahra cemetery in Tehran, Iran.