Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu ousts Yoav Gallant as Israeli Defense Minister

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defense minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday, a long-rumored move announced on election day in the United States. Netanyahu and Gallant had repeatedly clashed over the conduct of the war in Gaza and Lebanon.

In response to the decision, protests broke out in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Critics accused Netanyahu of putting his own political survival above the well-being of Israel, while the families of those held hostage in Gaza expressed deep concerns about the impact Gallant's firing could have on security efforts to secure the release of their loved ones.

Gallant will be replaced by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, who thanked Netanyahu in a social media post for entrusting him with the role. Gideon Saar, a former Netanyahu opponent, becomes foreign minister, solidifying support for the fragile ruling coalition that keeps the embattled Israeli leader in power.

“In the midst of a war, full trust between the prime minister and the defense minister is needed more than ever,” Netanyahu said. “Although very fruitful work was done in the first few months of the election campaign, unfortunately the trust between me and the Defense Minister broke down in the last few months.”

Netanyahu added that there were significant “gaps” between what the cabinet decided and what he called “the campaign.”

He added that most members of the government and cabinet shared a “crisis of confidence” with Gallant.

Gallant responded Tuesday: “The security of the State of Israel has been and remains my life’s mission.”

In a later speech, he said that Netanyahu had informed him of the decision that evening.

He said he was fired because of discord over three key issues, including his support for Israel making “painful compromises” to secure the release of hostages still held in Gaza and his calls for a commission of inquiry to investigate Israel's failings October 7, 2023 and his support for legislation that would remove exemptions allowing ultra-Orthodox Jewish men to avoid conscription.

There have been signs of tension in the relationship between Gallant and Netanyahu in recent months. Gallant was scheduled to meet his U.S. counterpart, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in Washington in early October – a trip initiated by Gallant – but was postponed at Netanyahu's request.

Gallant, who worked in the military for decades, criticized Netanyahu's approach to the conflicts with Hamas and Hezbollah.

His dismissal immediately drew criticism from opposition leader Benny Gantz, who said it was “politics at the expense of national security.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid condemned the decision as an “act of madness” and accused Netanyahu of “selling out the security of Israel and IDF fighters for a shameful political survival.”

In a statement, the Forum for Hostages and Missing Families expressed its “deep concern” about the decision and what impact it would have on “the fate of 101 hostages held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza for nearly 400 days.”

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on

Netanyahu's decision was welcomed by his ultranationalist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who congratulated him on the move.

“With Gallant…it is not possible to achieve an absolute victory,” Ben-Gvir wrote on X.

In a nationally televised statement in May, Gallant called out Netanyahu for his refusal to discuss a ceasefire and hostage-taking agreement. He said that would force Israel to rule the Palestinian enclave again.

“We must make difficult decisions about the future of our country and put national priorities above all other possible considerations, even at the possibility of personal or political cost,” Gallant said this summer.

In the United States, a spokesman for the National Security Council said Gallant had been an important partner in Israel's defense.

“As close partners, we will continue to work with Israel’s next defense minister,” the spokesman said.

A U.S. official called Gallant's firing a surprise.

“The surprise decision to fire Defense Secretary Gallant is troubling, especially in the midst of two wars and as Israel prepares to defend itself against a possible attack from Iran,” the official said. “We have real questions about the reasons for Gallant’s firing and what drives the decision?”

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Gallant was a “trusted partner as Israel’s defense minister.”

“America’s commitment to Israel’s security remains ironclad and the U.S. Department of Defense will continue to work closely with Israel’s next defense minister,” he said.

Mustafa Barghouti, leader of the Palestinian National Initiative political party, said Gallant's dismissal was “evidence of a deep internal divide in the Israeli system that stems from the failure of Israeli aggression to achieve its goals.”

In the days following the Hamas-led terrorist attacks on October 7, 2023, which Israeli officials said killed more than 1,200 people, Gallant announced a “complete siege” of the Gaza Strip.

“No electricity, no food, no water, no gas – everything is closed,” Gallant said at the time, adding that his military was fighting “human animals” in Gaza, where more than 43,000 people have been killed, according to local officials.

Netanyahu fired Gallant in March 2023 after he publicly disagreed with the government and pushed to stop a controversial plan to reform the justice system. The move sparked mass protests and prompted Netanyahu to reverse the decision.