When Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sacked his defence minister, Yoav Gallant, on November 5, he was settling accounts with the only well-qualified and experienced member of his cabinet.
The war is still being fought on many fronts and Israel is preparing istelf for Iran’s long announced next assault. But Netanyahu chose to dispense with a defence minister with a distinguished military career.
His replacement, Israel Katz, is a nonentity who has no serious military experience. His tenure at the foreign ministry had only been noteworthy for his posts on social media insulting foreign leaders.
Netanyahu’s long desire for a pliant defence minister rather than someone on top of the job underlines the Israeli prime minister’s motivation to place his political survival ahead of Israel’s security.
Gallant’s independence and professionalism had been a thorn in Netanyahu’s side for 18 months. He tried to sack him in March 2023, when Gallant expressed opposition to government plans to weaken the judiciary, warning that the deep divisions the policy had created in Israeli society created serious security risks.
But news of his sacking brought hundreds of thousands on to the streets and a general strike was threatened. So, Netanyahu backtracked and reinstated Gallant.
Netanyahu and Gallant have had minimal contact since the beginning of the war in Gaza. And in September 2024, the prime minister’s office leaked accounts of negotiations with Gideon Sa’ar of the opposition New Hope party on joining the government, suggesting that he would become defence minister.
In the end, Sa’ar settled for the post of minister without portfolio, and Netanyahu strengthened his coalition. Sa'ar has now become the new foreign minister in place of Katz.
In an interview after his removal, Gallant explained his three main disagreements with Netanyahu. Gallant favoured a hostage release deal and an end to the war in Gaza, which he said had accomplished its objectives. He also wanted universal conscription and an end to the exemption of ultra-Orthodox men from military service, as well as an immediate state inquiry into the causes of the October 7 Hamas-led attacks.
Netanyahu accused Gallant of being disloyal and ludicrously claimed that the only military successes of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in Gaza and Lebanon were due to him and not the defence minister. Israelis have become used to the prime minister claiming to be a genius, but this is unlikely to convince many.
Military implications
The removal of Gallant is not only politically very significant. It also has serious military implications. Gallant was very much the representative of the IDF in the cabinet and expressed the concerns of high command that the military mission in Gaza was essentially over. As soon as Gallant was fired, rumours circulated that Netanyahu was also about to sack the IDF’s commander in chief, Herzl Halevi, and internal security head, Ronen Bar.
He sees both as standing in his way. Halevi has publicly disagreed with the prime minister’s slogan of “total victory” in Gaza, with his spokesperson explaining in June that Islamist ideology cannot be defeated militarily. Bar leads the organisation that is currently investigating security leaks from the prime minister’s own department. The suspicion is that the leaks were motivated to serve Netanyahu’s political desire to keep the Gaza war going.
The prime minister’s office has denied the rumours about Halevi and Bar. But it does seem that they could be in the firing line along with the attorney-general, Gali Baharav-Miara, who is seen as using legal arguments to block Netanyahu from extending his grip on power.
Gallant’s departure could be a pivotal moment in Netanyahu’s determination to reshape Israel in his own political image. That means not only diminishing the role of the judiciary, but also undermining the influence of the IDF and the security establishment.
While Gallant and most of the IDF high command have for some months been in favour of a hostage deal and a withdrawal from Gaza, that does not suit Netanyahu. Indeed, as can currently be seen in northern Gaza where the few remaining Palestinians are being forcibly evacuated, the prime minister wants a supine IDF to carry out his orders, including what could amount to ethnic cleansing. With Gallant out of the way, that becomes much easier.
Netanyahu’s far-right government has signalled its direction with the nomination of Yechiel Leiter as the new Israeli ambassador to Washington. Leiter was a member of the racist Kahanist movement in the US in his youth, which the state department defined as a terrorist organisation in 2004 (a decision that was reversed in 2022).
And in the 40 years since Leiter moved to Israel, he has been active in the settler movement and is an advocate of the annexation of the West Bank. He will soon be in Washington representing such policies to the new US president, Donald Trump.
Read more: Israel: what hardliners in Netanyahu's government want from the war
It seems that Netanyahu’s plan for the “day after the war” is what could be deemed ethnic cleansing of northern Gaza and the annexation of the West Bank. With Gallant no longer in post it will be easier to turn the IDF into the tool to put both policies into effect. It also shows that war in Gaza is a war of choice – Netanyhau’s choice.
Netanyahu’s Israel seems to be dumping both liberal democracy and rule of law while opting for permanent occupation. This did not start with Gallant’s sacking, but it has certainly escalated the process with devastating consequences both for Palestinians and Israelis.
John Strawson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
