Benjamin Netanyahu fires defence minister Yoav Gallant

Benjamin Netanyahu has fired Yoav Gallant
Benjamin Netanyahu (right) has fired Yoav Gallant (left) amid a row over the direction of the war - Abir Sultan/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Benjamin Netanyahu has fired Yoav Gallant, his defence minister, amid a row over the direction of the war.

The prime minister of Israel said that trust between himself and Mr Gallant had “cracked” and gaps in their approach to the year-long war in Gaza and more recently Lebanon had “grown wider”.

Mr Netanyahu replaced Mr Gallant with Israel Katz, the former foreign minister, after the surprise sacking, with the new defence minister expected to take a more hardline approach to Iran.

Mr Gallant had long complained that Israel is fighting with no clear end goal, reportedly describing Mr Netanyahu’s aim of total victory as “gibberish”.

A source familiar with the issue told The Telegraph that Mr Netanyahu had decided a while ago to fire Mr Gallant but decided to announce it on Tuesday while Washington and the world media focuses on the US election.

“The US is preoccupied with the elections so it was a matter of timing,” the source said.]

The dismissal sparked protests across the country, including a mass gathering that paralysed central Tel Aviv.

Within hours, thousands of protesters gathered in the city, blocking its main highway and crippling traffic.

The crowd, many holding blue and white Israeli flags and others blowing whistles and pounding drums, gathered around multiple bonfires.

Thousands also demonstrated outside Mr Netanyahu’s home in Jerusalem and elsewhere in the city.

Protesters near Mr Netanyahu's residence in Jerusalem
Protesters near Mr Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem - AP

Gideon Sa’ar will take over from Mr Katz as foreign minister as Mr Netanyahu cited a breakdown in trust between him and Mr Gallant as he was sacked for the second time in two years.

“My supreme commitment as prime minister of Israel is to safeguard Israel’s security and lead us to an absolute victory,” he said in a video statement.

“In the midst of a war, more than ever, there needs to be full trust between the prime minister and the defence minister.

“Unfortunately, although in the first months of the war there was trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defence minister.”

Protesters take to the streets in Tel Aviv
Protesters take to the streets in Tel Aviv - Shutterstock

Mr Netanyahu, who is also fighting a scandal over alleged leaks linked to an aide, added that they had disagreed on the handling of the war and grown continually apart.

“I made many attempts to bridge these gaps but they kept getting wider,” he said. “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.”

Mr Gallant said he was fired over his “firm belief” that everyone of conscription age – 18 in Israel – must serve in the IDF.

“This is not just a social issue – but the most important issue for our existence and our future,” he said, implying Mr Netanyahu did not hold the same belief.

Mr Gallant said that “the security of the state of Israel was and will always remain the mission of my life”.

Mr Netanyahu is reported to have handed Mr Gallant a one-sentence termination letter in person, according to The Times of Israel.

Israel Katz, the new defence minister, is considered a hawk
Israel Katz, the new defence minister, is considered a hawk - Florion Goga/Reuters

Tensions between the pair have become apparent in recent weeks with Mr Netanyahu briefly blocking a visit by Mr Gallant to Washington in October.

Mr Gallant said the trip was postponed “at the prime minister’s request” as Mr Netanyahu awaited a one-on-one call with President Biden.

Mr Netanyahu was reportedly concerned about Washington’s close relationship with Mr Gallant, who has been the US’s key interlocutor as Biden officials push for more aid to be delivered to Gaza and restraint on the battlefield.

When Mr Netanyahu first tried to fire Mr Gallant in March 2023, mass protests, later dubbed “Gallant night”, broke out immediately in Tel Aviv. Mr Gallant had opposed Mr Netanyahu’s sweeping judicial reforms, which brought tens of thousands of Israelis out on the streets across the country’s major cities.

In a letter to Mr Netanyahu before Israel struck Iran in October, Mr Gallant is said to have complained Israel was fighting according to an “outdated compass” and needed to revise its official war aims.

He reportedly wrote: “Significant developments in the war, especially Israel and Iran trading direct blows, raise the necessity of holding a discussion and updating the war’s goals with a comprehensive look.”

Mr Netanyahu is also understood to have decided to fire Mr Gallant amid growing divisions within his government over the drafting of ultra-orthodox Haredi men into the IDF.

Hard-Right members of his coalition are urging him to pass laws that would benefit Haredis who avoid military service.

Mr Gallant opposes the laws but ultra-orthodox parties have threatened to bring down the government if they are not passed.

Yair Lapid, the leader of the opposition, urged Israelis to take to the streets as they did last time Mr Gallant was sacked.

“Firing Yoav Gallant in the middle of the war is an act of madness. Netanyahu is selling out Israel’s security and the soldiers of the IDF for his own political survival. I call upon Yesh Atid supporters and every patriotic Zionist to take to the streets tonight in protest,” he said.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents most of those still being held in Gaza, expressed deep concern over the move and how it could affect the fate of the 101 hostages still held by Hamas.

Immediate release of hostages

“We expect the incoming defence minister, Israel Katz, to prioritise a hostage deal and work closely with mediators and the international community to secure the immediate release of all hostages.

“The defence minister’s foremost obligation is to ensure the security of our citizens. We expect him to fulfil his duty both to the state and to the women, men and children who were kidnapped on Oct 7. Our future as a society depends on the return of all hostages and the end of this war.”

However, hard-Right members of Mr Netanyahu’s government welcomed the decision.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, said: “Congratulations to the prime minister on the decision to fire Gallant. With Gallant, who is still deeply trapped in ‘the concept’ it is not possible to achieve absolute victory and the prime minister did well to remove him from his position.”

Mr Katz is considered a hawk and may want to show he is tougher than Mr Gallant in dealing with Hamas and Hezbollah.

A firm believer in targeted killings as a method to weaken Israel’s enemies, Mr Katz is expected to push for more assassinations. He is also a firm advocate of strikes on Iran.