Newborn son of UAE martyr ‘the most beautiful gift he left’

Abdullah Al Hammadi’s mother holds her three-day-old grandson Abdulrahman. Abdullah died in the line of duty in Operation Restoring Hope, but for his family he lives on in his precious little boy. ReeShow more

AJMAN // Looking into the face of her newborn son, Ansam Ahmad vows that he will grow up to know of the courage and sacrifice of the father he so resembles.

On September 4, Abdullah Al Hammadi and 44 of his Emirati comrades were killed in Yemen after a missile fired by Houthi rebels hit an arms depot in Marib.

Other soldiers died later of their injuries.

More than 10 weeks after Abdullah’s death, his family welcomed Abdulrahman, his second child. It was a bittersweet moment, says Ansam, 23.

“This is the most beautiful gift he left for me and I wish he was here to see his son and kiss him,” she says, with tears in her eyes.

Abdulrahman and his sister Sana, 3, will be influenced by their father, Ansam says.

“I will raise my son to be as his father in personality, empathy with others, patriotism and sacrifice for the sake of his homeland. And I will tell him when he grows up about how his father was a great man and dad.”

Abdullah, 27, was a unique man with an ever-present smile and was caring until the end, his wife says.

“Most of his time was at work, and when he had come back home he used to compensate us for the time that he was not with us, because he loved to spend his free time with his family,” Ansam says.

“His aim in life was to be stable and have a family, and he put all his effort into building this family.”

His family always occupied his thoughts. Shortly before he left for Yemen, Abdullah asked Ansam to take care of their daughter, 3.

“He and I had a feeling that he would die and in his last period with us he used to always advise me to take care of Sana and to always pray and read the Quran, which relieves my pain,” she says.

The feelings of joy and sadness are felt by all, Abdullah’s mother says.

“It hurts me so much that he is not with us, because he was waiting for this day to see his son,” Umm Abdullah says.

When he is older Abdulrahman, whose father named him after his deceased younger brother, will learn much about the soldier.

Umm Abdullah has videos of her son, which will be shown to Abdulrahman when he grows older. But some things cannot be replaced.

“His first daughter, Sana, is still waiting for her father to come back, but Abdulrahman will grow up with his uncles and aunts and will call his grandfather Papa Ali.

“He won’t hear the words Papa Abdullah.”

Despite the pain of Abdullah’s loss, his child will be much loved, says his sister Farah.

“The absence of Abdullah pains me but the birth of Abdulrahman pleases me,” she says of the young boy, who she says looks like his father.

“Abdulrahman is my love because he is Abdullah’s son, and may Allah protect him and he will be in our eyes.”