In a modest event space in Tel Aviv last Thursday evening, families, soldiers, authors, and educators gathered for a ceremony both heartbreaking and heartwarming: the launch of “The Gifts of Salman,” a bilingual children’s book commemorating fallen Israeli officer Lt. Col. Salman Habaka.

The book, written in both Hebrew and Arabic, was penned by his aunt, Kawakib Safe, and is based on Salman’s love for language, nature, and family — values he lived by and ultimately died for.

“His house was filled with books — on leadership, history, culture,” Kawakib told The Press Service of Israel at the launch. “He believed in words. He believed in teaching. This book is for his son, and for every child who wants to know who Salman was.

Salman, a Druze Israeli, commanded the IDF’s 53rd Armored Battalion. On October 7, 2023, after Hamas launched its surprise attack on southern Israel, Salman drove south from his home in Yanuh.

His leadership helped save civilians in Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the hardest-hit areas that day. He was later killed in combat in the Zeitoun area of northern Gaza.

Following Salman’s death, a nonprofit organization called Dreams of Life reached out to his family. The organization helps bereaved families fulfill an unrealized dream of their loved one.

For Salman, who was raising his young son Emad to speak Arabic, Hebrew, and English, the answer seemed clear: a book celebrating language, heritage, and love.

The book tells the story of a Druze boy and his grandmother herding goats. When a baby goat gets stuck between rocks, the boy first tries to pull it free — and fails.

Then, gently, he moves the stone. On the way home, he picks flowers and gives them as gifts to his mother and grandmother. It’s a story about compassion, creativity, and generosity — traits that defined Salman.

“This is more than a children’s book,” said co-writer and youth novelist Iris Eliya-Cohen. “It’s an act of remembrance, of healing, and of hope.”

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