In the Druze town of Daliyat al-Karmel outside of Haifa, Col. Ahsan Daksa was laid to rest earlier this week after being killed in battle in Gaza. Thousands accompanied Col. Daksa, commander of the 401st Brigade, on his final journey, including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, spiritual leader of the Druze community Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif , Daliyat al-Karmel Council head Rafik Halabi, community dignitaries, residents, and soldiers.
Daksa was one of the highest ranking soldiers from the Druze minority, an Arab ethnic group of around 150,000 living in Israel. Unlike most other Arabs, Druze men are required by law to enlist in the military.
Defense Minister Gallant described Daksa as “a natural leader to his soldiers and a source of strength.”
“Alongside the great pain, which is unbearable, the image of Ahsan—the son, husband and father, commander and fighter—should be a source of pride and strength for the Druze community throughout the state of Israel,” Gallant said. “I promise you that we will do everything to continue in Ahsan’s path and values and we will continue to walk in the light of his path and in the paths of his legacy. Even today, when we are pained by the loss and the heavy mourning, and perhaps precisely at these moments, we must continue to realize our goals until we achieve the goals of the war and are worthy of the fall of the best of us.”
Deputy Chief of Staff, Maj. Gen. Amir Baram also eulogized Daksa: “Ahsan was only 41 years old when he fell in battle,” Baram said. “He was the first to clear the streets of terrorists and also the first to fall there as a hero. He was a son of the land and a great lover of it. His deep sense of responsibility, his loyalty to the country and his pride in it, his dedication and brotherhood of fighters, all brought him to be there, where he fell while on guard. Our paths crossed many times throughout our service and on all fronts. In his character, his personality, and his moral and military way of life, all the worthy and noble good in the life of a combat soldier came to expression.”
Baram described Daksa as “the most Israeli commander I’ve ever met,” praising his “special leadership, quiet and full of self-confidence.”
At the end of his speech, Baram addressed members of the Druze community. “To the dear and grieving Druze community that lost 13 of its children in the war and whose fighting Israeli heritage is engraved in gold letters in the book of Israel’s heroes, I would like to say that their sacrifice once again reminds us of the magnitude of the responsibility placed on us,” he said. “To guard the state of Israel, which we have built together as one society, and to do everything possible to protect our existence and security in this country. Always remember that Hezbollah in the north, Hamas in the south, and the Revolutionary Guards in Iran did not distinguish between color and religion, so despite the differences and disagreements, we must keep Ahsan’s will and the will of all fallen IDF soldiers. Only through Israeli togetherness will we win.”
A group of soldiers from the brigade, who asked to remain anonymous, spoke of the great loss: “He was our brigade commander. It is deeply painful to lose him. You do what needs to be done, but it hurts.”
Katish Faris, a resident of Daliyat al-Karmel, told Davar he came to the funeral despite not knowing Daksa personally. “He was my sister's friend,” Faris said. “We didn't know how heroic and successful he was. I feel a sense of loss, a great loss. I go to every funeral in my area, whether they be Jews or Druze.”
Roei Tuniq of the Brothers and Sisters in Arma organization chose to bring a Druze flag with him. “It bothered me that there were no flags of the Druze community at the ceremony, only Israeli flags,” he said. He noted that Druze Israelis are often praised by the government when they fall in battle even as the community is constantly threatened by government home demolitions.
“What a lesson in unity, in Zionism, they give us with their patience,” Tuniq said of the Druze.
Daksa left behind his wife Huda, and three children—Omri, 4, Rif, 9, and Yasmin, 14.
“Ahsan was present in every corner of the house,” Huda said in her eulogy. “Even when he wasn't there and when he was away for a long time, he was still very, very present among us, and we will make sure that it will always be that way. Ahsan believed in his own path and also believed that through his modest contribution, as he used to say, he could influence a better future here. So I use this platform to ask that the path he has taken, which he has chosen, will not be in vain.”
This article was translated from Hebrew by Benji Sharp.
