Middle East & Africa | Israeli politics

Binyamin Netanyahu fires his defence minister

The Israeli prime minister stamps his authority on his government

Former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant speaks at Hariya base following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to fire him
So long, farewellPhotograph: Flash90
|JERUSALEM

Over the past year the two men leading Israel’s war effort could barely hide their contempt for each other. So when Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, announced on November 5th that he was, at last, firing his defence minister, Yoav Gallant, because of the “increasingly wide crisis of confidence” between them, it was not surprising. But the timing, with Israeli troops still fighting in Gaza and Lebanon, and Iran expected to respond to Israel’s recent strikes, was unexpected.

Explore more

This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Not very Gallant”

From the November 9th 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Discover more

A man inspects the damage at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike that targeted the Shayyah neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs on November 26, 2024

Israel and Hizbullah strike a fragile deal to end their war 

Joe Biden’s last roll of the dice on peace in the Middle East

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant hold a press conference in Tel Aviv

The arrest warrant is a diplomatic disaster for Netanyahu

But may also undermine the International Criminal Court


Food distributed to displaced Palestinians in Gaza

Israel’s hardliners reckon Gaza’s chaos shows they must control it

Only 11 out of a recent convoy of 109 aid trucks managed to get in


Why GM crops aren’t feeding Africa

Despite decades of research, few countries grow them there

A genocidal militia’s quest for legitimacy

A warring party in Sudan claims it wants to talk peace

Get ready for “Maximum Pressure 2.0” on Iran 

The Trump White House may bomb and penalise the regime into a deal