On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who was recently calling for Israel to make “painful concessions” to reach a hostage deal with Hamas.
“Unfortunately, over the past months, the trust between me and the minister of defense has been broken. There were significant gaps regarding the management of the [military] campaign, and these gaps were accompanied by statements and actions that contradicted the decisions of the government and of the Cabinet,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
Gallant is set to be replaced by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz. Gideon Sa’ar, a former Netanyahu rival who joined the government after Israel’s dramatic escalations in Lebanon in September, will replace Katz as foreign minister.
Netanyahu’s decision to fire Gallant was slammed by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents relatives of Israeli hostages in Gaza. According to Haaretz, the group said the firing was part of Netanyahu’s “efforts” to torpedo any chances of a hostage deal with Hamas.
The firing was praised by Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvit, who has called for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Gaza and wants the establishment of Jewish settlements in the Strip. “I congratulate the prime minister on the decision to dismiss Gallant. With Gallant, who is still deeply trapped in his own conception, it is impossible to achieve a complete victory,” Ben Gvir said.
Israeli opposition parties called for protests against Netanyahu over the firing, and thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Tel Aviv to block traffic and light fires.
Netanyahu and Gallant have been at odds over much of the past year. In August, Gallant called Netanyahu’s goal of “total victory” in Gaza “nonsense.” Gallant has repeatedly called for a deal with Hamas but made clear he only wanted a temporary deal and didn’t want to end the genocidal war.
Comments from Gallant in October 2023 are often cited as evidence of Israel’s genocidal intent in Gaza. On October 9, 2023, Gallant said he ordered a “complete siege” on Gaza and said Israel was fighting “human animals.”
Katz, Gallant’s replacement, also called for a total siege at the time. “Humanitarian aid to Gaza? No electrical switch will be turned on, no water hydrant will be opened, and no fuel truck will enter until the Israeli abductees are returned home. Humanitarianism for humanitarianism. And no one will preach us morality,” he said.
