Netanyahu sacks defence minister Gallant
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed defence minister Yoav Gallant on November 5th, according to the Arab News via AP.
Netanyahu cited “significant gaps” and a “crisis of trust” between himself and Gallant in this announcement. “In the midst of a war, more than ever, full trust is required between the prime minister and defence minister,” Netanyahu said. “Unfortunately, although in the first months of the campaign there was such trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defence minister.”
He claimed he had made “many attempts” to bridge the gaps with Gallant. “But they kept getting wider. They also came to the knowledge of the public in an unacceptable way, and worse than that, they came to the knowledge of the enemy — our enemies enjoyed it and derived a lot of benefit from it,” he said.
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Earlier into the war, Israel presented its leadership as a united front against Hamas, but as the conflict has dragged on and Israel has expanded it to Lebanon, differences have emerged.
Netanyahu opposes any hostage deal with Hamas, while Gallant has said that military force has created the necessary conditions for a hostage deal.
Gallant said in a statement that “the security of the state of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life’s mission.”
A previous attempt to fire Gallant by Netanyahu back in March 2023 sparked widespread protest, while the PM flirted with the idea of sacking Gallant over the summer but held off until this week.
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Gallant will be replaced with Netanyahu loyalist and current foreign minister Israel Katz, while the position of foreign minister will be filled by Netanyahu rival-turned ally Gideon Saar.
The sacking of Gallant leaves Netanyahu as the only remaining one of the three main members of the war cabinet created last October. Benny Gantz, the third member, resigned back in June following disagreements with Netanyahu over the war, as reported by NBC News.
AP, NBC News
