Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, marking a major shift in Israel's wartime leadership, according to Israeli media reports.
"My highest commitment as prime minister is to ensure Israel's security and lead us to complete victory," Netanyahu said in a videotaped address.
"During wartime, the trust between a prime minister and a defense minister must be absolute. While we had that trust and worked productively together in the early months of this campaign, that relationship has deteriorated significantly in recent months," he explained.
Netanyahu revealed that he and Gallant developed serious differences over the management of the war effort, with Gallant taking positions that contradicted both government and cabinet decisions.
"I made numerous attempts to bridge our differences, but the divide only grew wider. These disagreements became public in ways they shouldn't have, and worse still, became known to our enemies – who took great satisfaction and advantage of the situation," Netanyahu added.
Responding to his dismissal, Gallant tweeted: "Israel's security was and will always remain my life's mission."
ביטחון מדינת ישראל היה ותמיד יישאר משימת חיי 🇮🇱🇮🇱
— יואב גלנט - Yoav Gallant (@yoavgallant) November 5, 2024
This isn't the first clash between the two leaders. Their relationship has been strained for some time, coming to a head during the "Gallant Night" protests in March 2023, when thousands demonstrated against Netanyahu's previous attempt to dismiss Gallant.
Netanyahu announced that Israel Katz will take over as defense minister, citing Katz's experience as minister of foreign affairs, minister of finance, and his five-year tenure as minister of intelligence, as well as his long-standing membership in the Security Cabinet.
