Habib Bey Salimov was born on February 8, 1881 in Iravan. His father, Haji Yusif Bey, worked as a judge in Iravan Governorate. Habib Bey graduated from Iravan Gymnasium. He volunteered for the army in August 1900 and served in Yelizavetpol (Ganja) Cavalry Regiment and received the rank of non-commissioned officer. After graduating from the cavalry school in Tbilisi in 1902, he started serving in the Third Caucasian Rifle Battalion. In 1905, he was appointed aide to the battalion commander, and in 1907, he was appointed the commander of the third military unit. In September of the same year, he was awarded the Order of “Saint Vladimir”. In 1908–1910, Habib Bey served as part of the Fifth Caucasian Rifle Battalion on the borders of Julfa, Nakhchivan. He received the rank of captain in 1912. Later, he graduated from the Nikolayev General Staff Military Academy in St. Petersburg.

He started serving in the Muslim Corps on March 14, 1918. Later, he was appointed chief of staff of the corps’ brigade consisting of three cavalry regiments. After the declaration of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, Salimov took an active part in the battles against the Dashnak-Bolshevik troops as part of the Caucasian Islamic Army. The Mususlu unit formed under his command won a brilliant victory over the Dashnak-Bolshevik military units in the battles around Mususlu, Kurdamir and Karrar. The Southern group, which was formed in the middle of July 1918 at the base of the Mususlu detachment, under the command of Habib Bey, passed an honorable battle path to the outskirts of Baku. On November 15, 1918, by order No. 2 of the Ministry of War, Salimov was appointed the head of the General Staff of the Azerbaijan Army and the office of the ministry. On February 28, 1919, by the decision of the Council of Ministers, Habib Bey was awarded the rank of Major General.

In July 1919, under the command of Brigadier General Habib Bey Salimov, the Malakan and Russian-Armenian armed forces that did not want to recognize the Azerbaijani national government were crushed in Mughan and Lankaran.

On February 17, 1920, Habib Bey Salimov was appointed the chairman of the commission created for the reconstruction of the Azerbaijani army headquarters. After the establishment of the unified headquarters of the Azerbaijani army, Habib Bey was appointed its chief.

One of the main services of Habib Bey Salimov was the successful Karabakh operation in March-April 1920. During this operation, the Armenian-Dashnak armed units, which had betrayed the state and launched an armed uprising, were dealt with a heavy blow, and the sovereign rights of Azerbaijan were restored in the region.

Habib Bey Salimov resigned from the army after the April 1920 invasion. Habib Bey was appointed military commissar in Nakhchivan in May 1920. On September 1 of that year, Habib Bey was arrested and shot on December 30.