Netanyahu Fires Defense Minister

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in the operations center at the headquarters of Israel's Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Oct. 26, 2024. GPO via Reuters

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, on Nov. 5, bringing a longstanding conflict to a head.

Netanyahu planned to move Foreign Minister Israel Katz to the position of defense minister and replace him with Gideon Sa'ar, who would be added to the Cabinet.

Netanyahu and Gallant had been at odds throughout the war in Gaza, but Netanyahu had held off on firing him. A previous attempt to fire him in March 2023, before the war broke out, sparked widespread street protests after Gallant said the government’s attempts at judicial reform endangered national security.

“My highest duty as prime minister of Israel is to safeguard Israel’s security and lead us to a decisive victory,” Netanyahu said in a statement on Nov. 5.

“During wartime, more than ever, a complete trust between the prime minister and the defense minister is essential. Unfortunately, while we initially had this trust and accomplished much in the early months of the campaign, over recent months, the trust between me and the defense minister has eroded.

“Serious differences arose between Gallant and me regarding the campaign’s management, with these disagreements accompanied by statements and actions that contradicted both government and Cabinet decisions.

“I made repeated efforts to bridge these gaps, but they only widened. These issues even reached the public in an unacceptable manner, and worse, became known to our enemies, who took pleasure and found advantage in it.”

Gallant, in a brief statement on social media platform X, said, “The security of the state of Israel was and will always remain my life’s mission.”

Gallant’s firing came a day after he approved the army’s request to draft 7,000 more ultra-Orthodox men.

The issue has been a sticking point with Netanyahu, whose coalition partners support draft exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox.

Opposition leader Ya'ir Lapid, in a post on X, condemned the firing as “an act of madness,” accusing Netanyahu of “selling Israel’s security and the IDF fighters for a disgraceful political survival.”

Netanyahu praised Katz, his choice to replace Gallant, as having proven himself as foreign minister, finance minister, and intelligence minister over the past five years, and he noted that Katz has been a longstanding member of the Security Cabinet.

“He brings an impressive combination of experience and practical skill, known as a ‘bulldozer’ with a quiet strength and responsible determination—all essential qualities in the campaign’s leadership,” Netanyahu said.

Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Israel Katz arrives for a Foreign Affairs Council meeting at the EU headquarters in Brussels on Jan. 22, 2024. Photo by JOHN THYS / AFP

He said he had invited Sa'ar to become foreign minister.

Sa'ar previously held portfolios in the Cabinet, including education from 2009 to 2013, the interior from 2013 to 2014, justice from 2021 to 2022, and deputy prime minister in 2021.

He unsuccessfully challenged Netanyahu for Likud Party leadership five years ago then left Likud to form the New Hope Party.

Sa'ar joined the Cabinet as minister without portfolio after the war began in October 2023, left six months later and rejoined the Cabinet in September, again as a minister without portfolio.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.