A Jewish settler born raised in the Binyamin region, Asael balanced the demands of family life with a deep sense of responsibility to serve his country.

By Hezy Laing

Sgt. Maj. (res.) Asael Bababad was an IDF reservist whose life came to embody courage, devotion, and incredible generosity even after his death.

Bababad was wounded in combat in the Rafah area on October 19, 2025, in a violent engagement shortly after a ceasefire had gone into effect.

During that operation, the IDF engineering force he was attached to was working to locate and destroy terrorist infrastructure, including underground tunnels, when they came under direct fire from Hamas terrorists emerging from a tunnel.

In that attack, an anti-tank weapon was fired at an IDF engineering vehicle at very close range, killing two soldiers—Maj. Yaniv Kula and Sgt. Itai Yavetz—and leaving Asael critically wounded alongside another soldier who was moderately injured.

He was evacuated to medical facilities and subsequently treated in hospital, where he fought for more than three months before ultimately dying of his wounds.

His injuries were sustained in the context of this direct hostile engagement in Rafah and reflect the extreme danger of frontline engineering and tunnel-clearance missions in that theater.

From that moment, a long and painful struggle began, as Asael fought for his life in hospital, supported by devoted medical teams and surrounded by prayers from his family, friends, and community.

For more than three months, hope persisted, but the severity of his injuries ultimately proved insurmountable.

On January 22, 2026, Asael succumbed to his wounds, becoming another painful reminder of the human price paid by those defending the State of Israel.

He was mourned not only as a fallen soldier, but as a husband and father whose absence left a profound void at home.

Asael is survived by his wife and their five children, a family ranging from early childhood to adolescence who had been the center of his world.

A Jewish settler born raised in the Binyamin region, Asael balanced the demands of family life with a deep sense of responsibility to serve, answering the call to duty even after completing regular service.

The Binyamin region has lost an unbelievable 60 soldiers since October 7th. This is an unbelievable 12.7% of all combat deaths despite the fact that the region is home to only 2.5% percent of the total Israeli population.

Friends and relatives described him as a gentle, principled man, deeply committed to his children’s lives and to instilling in them values of kindness, faith, and responsibility.

In a final act that reflected the values he lived by, Asael’s family chose to donate his organs after his death.

Through that decision, lives were saved and others dramatically improved, turning personal tragedy into hope for strangers who would never know his name but would live because of him.

Doctors and recipients spoke of the extraordinary gift, emphasizing how organ donation can transform loss into life.

In this way, Asael continued to serve even after his passing, not with a uniform or weapon, but with an act of pure humanity.

His legacy lives on in his children, in the nation he defended, and in the people who breathe, heal, and live on because of his final, selfless gift.