“My mother is my crown”: The story of Staff Sgt. Elie Eliahou Haim Emsallem
As part of the “Gal-Hed” project, we commemorate the heroes of the war, those whose lives were cut short without warning but who left behind a profound legacy of light and kindness. One of them was Staff Sgt. Elie Eliahou Haim Emsallem, a soldier in the Kfir Brigade who was killed in battle in the northern Gaza Strip on May 22, 2024. He was just 21.
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Elie, who immigrated with his family from France to Ra’anana, was a rare combination of contrasts. He was lively, energetic and headstrong. “He was against everything,” his mother, Alexandra, recalls with a smile. “Always pushing back, always doing whatever he had decided to do.” His father, Jacques, adds warmly: “He was exceptionally sweet, lovable and full of life.”
Elie’s stubborn determination was one of his defining traits. His mother recalls a family ski trip when Elie, who had never skied before, insisted on tackling a difficult black run. Despite falling again and again, with his skis flying in every direction, he refused to give up. “He never wanted to admit there was something he didn’t know how to do,” she says.
That same spirit stayed with him after he moved to Israel and encountered the freedom of Israeli life, so different from the sheltered environment of the Jewish community in France.
As a teenager, following the death of his grandmother, Elie underwent a profound spiritual transformation. The boy who loved designer sneakers (and was willing to stand in line from 4 a.m. to get a pair) and tennis became deeply devoted to his faith. He grew close to Chabad, became fascinated by the Lubavitcher Rebbe and began devoting hours to Torah study. “He was a teenager who loved sneakers and, at the same time, loved studying Torah,” his mother says of the unusual combination that defined him.
When the time came to enlist, Elie chose to serve in the Netzah Yehuda Battalion. Even amid the demands of military service, he stood out for his generosity and devotion to others. He would study Torah at night, then wake early in the morning to help his fellow soldiers put on tefillin. His concern for others knew no bounds. He secretly paid for meals for friends who could not afford them, making sure they would never be embarrassed.
His bond with his mother was extraordinary. He would call her 10 times a day just to hear her voice. When his army friends teased him about it, Elie would answer proudly: “My mother is my crown.”
On May 22, during an operational mission in the northern Gaza Strip, Elie volunteered alongside his commander for the difficult task of recovering the bodies of soldiers from another unit. During the mission, a sniper shot his commander and a combat medic.
Without hesitation, Elie rushed into the line of fire to save the wounded medic. In that moment, standing exposed as he tried to help another person, he was shot in the back and killed.
At home, Elie left behind notebooks filled with Torah lessons he had written, reflections on faith and on finding joy in what one has. Today, they provide comfort to his family.
His mother, who had written him a letter every day since the war began and hoped he would read them after he was discharged, turned those letters into a memorial book. “Elie did not fall. He rose,” his mother says, with pain and pride.
Staff Sgt. Elie Eliahou Haim Emsallem left behind a legacy of love for others, determination and a deep connection between the spiritual and the material; a hero who was always striving to better himself and do good, until his final moments.
Staff Sgt. Elie Eliahou Haim Emsallem of the Kfir Brigade was killed on May 22, 2024. He was 21.
May his memory be a blessing.
Staff Sergeant
Elie Eliahou Haim Emsallem