Why Did Netanyahu Fire the Minister of Defense?

A political earthquake shook Israel on Tuesday evening: In the midst of the war, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed defense minister Yoav Gallant.

Even though the timing was not right, the earthquake was inevitable. The coalition that keeps Netanyahu in power is built on a political fault line. On one side are the ultra-Orthodox parties that have served Netanyahu’s Likud party as reliable partners for decades. Their reward is government funding for their segregated communities and exemptions from military service for young ultra-Orthodox men on the grounds that they are devoted to religious studies. In their eyes, exemption is vital to maintaining their separation from mainstream Israeli society.

On the other side of the fault line are two far-right parties and at least the Likud itself. This wing of the coalition sees the war as an opportunity. Restart Israeli rule Gaza and even Israeli settlement There. Pressure from this direction is at least one reason why the war continues and there is no end in sight. Policy means: longer military service for conscripts, extended reserve duty periods for large numbers of Israelis, and photographs of fallen soldiers appearing daily in national news.

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Israeli Supreme Court in June It was decided unanimously Because the previous bill had expired, there was no legal basis to continue exempting ultra-Orthodox men. Ultra-Orthodox parties demand a new law largely protect exemption. Meeting this demand while continuing the war caused public anger to increase. Ignoring the demand could theoretically lead to the dissolution of the coalition and the fall of the government.

Gallant most prominent The coalition politician will oppose a new law in the form sought by the ultra-Orthodox. On Monday, he approved an army plan to send draft proclamations to thousands of ultra-Orthodox men. The next day, Netanyahu fired him.

The timing worked out for Netanyahu for another reason: Last week, the news broke It was stated that one of Netanyahu’s spokesmen was arrested on suspicion of leaking highly sensitive intelligence materials to foreign media. Aspects of this material were further distorted to support Netanyahu breaking the agreement with Hamas to release Israeli hostages. As of now, most details of the case remain under the court’s gag order. There is no claim yet that the prime minister knew about the leak or ordered the leak. But he definitely used Reports of the leak appeared in the press to justify their position. Gallant’s dismissal was controversial, but it also pushed the leak incident out of Israeli headlines, at least temporarily.

Netanyahu announced Gallant’s dismissal without addressing either the draft controversy or the leak scandal. Instead, he attributed his decision to “significant disagreements” with Gallant that made it impossible to work together “on the management of military operations.”

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This was part of the truth that obscured the whole truth. The disagreements are real and broader than Netanyahu admits. Gallant at a Knesset hearing in August It was reported that he was dismissed Netanyahu’s claim that Israel will achieve “absolute victory” against Hamas is “nonsense”. it exists publicly clashed He exchanged views with Netanyahu that a plan should be made for the “day after” the war and pressed for civilian control to be handed over to a Palestinian administration that is “not hostile” to Israel. HE reportedly suggested Deployment of a security force affiliated with the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank in Gaza – Netanyahu’s idea rejected. The prime minister appears likely to stick to his pre-war stance of blocking the unification of Gaza and the West Bank, lest it create momentum towards a Palestinian state.

Inside Gallant’s speech He cited three disagreements he had with Netanyahu on the night he was dismissed. One of these was the agreement to release the hostages, which Gallant supported. “There is and can be no atonement for abandoning the hostages.” Gallant declared.. The second was the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into Israel’s failure to prevent the Hamas attack on October 7. Gallant knows that such an investigation would place a large share of blame on himself as then-defense secretary. But this would likely place even more blame for the disaster on the prime minister. Netanyahu is determined to avoid such an investigation so that the military can bear all the blame. Gallant, a former general, does not accept this escape.

The third conflict was about conscription, Gallant said. He insisted that “everyone of military age should be drafted.” However, if Netanyahu accepts this position, his coalition will collapse.

Gallant is not a dove. He shares blame not only for the failures of October 7, but also for the brutal conduct of the war since then. He has not been an effective politician so far. He failed to create a loyal faction of Knesset members within Likud. Therefore, there is probably no chance of a rebellion within Netanyahu’s own party due to his dismissal.

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In fact, this is the second time Netanyahu has fired Gallant. The first was in March 2023, when Netanyahu and Justice Minister Yariv Levin pressed for the bills to come into force as soon as possible. “Judicial reform” A plan to eliminate restrictions on government powers. Gallant warned that pushing such changes without broad consensus was a threat to Israel’s security. Netanyahu responded by announcing that he had dismissed the defense minister. Hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets, making “Galant Night” the culmination of protests against constitutional changes. That’s when Netanyahu backed down, allowed Gallant to remain defense minister and temporarily suspended the “reform.”

Protests broke out again, this time, but not on such a large scale; Perhaps this was because layoffs seemed inevitable, or because most potential protesters were now on reserve duty, or because months of protests had led to exhaustion.

So Gallant left office. However, pressure on the government continues. Netanyahu needs a new draft law that will satisfy part of the coalition. He must continue the war without a hostage agreement to please the other. Members of his own party know that neither policy is popular. An earthquake looks more likely. It is not yet known whether it will break the foundation of the government.