Benjamin Netanyahu fires Defense Minister Yoav Gallant

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, on Tuesday, November 5, after differences over the conduct of the war in the Gaza Strip. He immediately replaced him with his foreign affairs counterpart, Israel Katz, who promised to defeat the “enemies” of the country.

This surprise announcement came while the result of the presidential election is awaited in the United States, the main ally of the Jewish state, which is fighting on two fronts, against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

“In the midst of war, trust is more than ever required between the Prime Minister and his Minister of Defense”more “in recent months, this confidence has eroded”said Mr. Netanyahu in a letter addressed to Mr. Gallant. “Significant differences emerged (…) in running the campaign [militaire]accompanied by statements and actions that contradicted the decisions of the government and the cabinet”he added.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog warned against “upheaval” in the country, at war for more than a year, and called for ” responsibility “. “The last thing the State of Israel needs right now is upheaval and rupture in the middle of war.”he said on X.

Gallant, an “important partner”, according to the United States

Mr. Gallant was, for the United States, a “important partner on all matters related to the defense of Israel”greeted a spokesperson for the State Department. “We will continue to work with the next Israeli defense minister”he assured.

Mr. Netanyahu chose the head of diplomacy, Israel Katz, whom he described as a « bulldozer »to replace Mr. Gallant. Serving on the security cabinet, Mr. Katz “combines the responsibility and calm problem-solving qualities that are essential to leading this campaign”insisted the Prime Minister.

“We will work together to lead the Ministry of Defense to victory against the enemy and achieve the objectives: the return of the hostages, the destruction of Hamas, the defeat of Hezbollah, the containment of Iranian aggression and the return home them safe from the inhabitants of the north and south [d’Israël] »assured Mr. Katz on X. Gideon Saar, current minister without portfolio, succeeds Mr. Katz in foreign affairs.

A “moral and ethical duty” to bring back captives

Mr. Gallant had established himself as a leading figure in Israel’s war against Hezbollah in neighboring Lebanon. But he attracted the wrath of the ultra-Orthodox parties, key allies of the prime minister’s coalition, by ordering the conscription of 10,000 men from this religious community who had until then benefited from an exemption under a rule established during of the creation of Israel in 1948. In 2018, the question of their conscription had created a crisis precipitating the country into several legislative elections.

Mr. Gallant also pleaded for a truce with Hamas with a view to obtaining the release of hostages still held in the Gaza Strip since the unprecedented attack of October 7, 2023, against Israel, while the objective hammered home by Benjamin Netanyahu is the annihilation of the Palestinian movement.

Israel must ensure the return of hostages “as quickly as possible” et “as long as they are alive”even at the cost of “painful compromise”Yoav Gallant said on Tuesday after being fired. “Our moral and ethical duty is to bring back (…) those kidnapped by Hamas. We need to do it as quickly as possible”he argued during a speech on television.

According to political analyst Aviv Bushinsky, Mr. Netanyahu’s former chief of staff, Mr. Gallant’s dismissal was just a “question of time”. “Maybe Netanyahu fears a Democratic victory” in the United States, which would have made “more complicated” such a dismissal. Mr. Netanyahu feels “reinforced by the improvement in his rating in the polls” et “also benefits from the fact that the world’s attention is elsewhere” with the American presidential election, judged Jonathan Rynhold, director of the political studies department at Bar-Ilan University.

Demonstration in Tel Aviv

Thousands of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv on Tuesday evening to demonstrate against the dismissal of Mr. Gallant and to demand that his successor, Israel Katz, prioritize an agreement on the return of hostages still held at Gaza. Others gathered in Jerusalem outside the prime minister’s residence.

The Families Forum, the main association of relatives of hostages, said “deeply worried” of Mr. Gallant’s ouster, calling on Mr. Katz to “prioritize” to an agreement for the release of captives in the Gaza Strip. Of 251 people kidnapped on October 7, 2023, 97 remain hostages, including thirty-four declared dead by the army.

Benjamin Netanyahu has “well done” to dismiss Yoav Gallant, for his part reacted the Israeli Minister of Internal Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, of the far right.