Defense minister and IDF chief clash publicly over latest round of general appointments

After differences of opinion between the political echelon and the military brass over the future of the Gaza War, Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir sparred publicly on Monday evening over the latest round of general appointments.

Most observers view the latest dispute as a continuation of the earlier clash, despite Katz having defended Zamir, whom he had nominated as army chief. Katz also clashed with Zamir’s predecessor over nominations of high-ranking officers, often over their possible roles in the Oct. 7 failures.

This latest round of debate began on Monday afternoon, when the Israel Defense Forces announced new appointments for Brigadier Generals, including several commanders of brigades that have seen extensive combat in Gaza in recent months.

The Defense Ministry then stated that the discussion over new assignments had been held “without prior coordination or agreement, violating standard procedure.”

“Therefore, the Defense Minister does not intend to discuss or approve the appointments – whether or not they were publicly released,” the ministry stated.

Nevertheless, the Israeli military issued an official announcement listing all of the appointments, noting that the discussion had been scheduled in advance. The IDF stated that the “Chief of Staff is the sole authority to issue appointment orders for ranks of Colonel and above… only afterward does the nomination go to the Minister for approval or rejection.”

The Defense Ministry then doubled down, claiming that, according to procedure, the army chief must present the defense minister with a range of candidates for each role and consult with him before their appointment.

Pointing to the dispute with Zamir’s predecessor, Herzi Halevi, the ministry noted, “There have been past cases where the Minister did not approve certain candidates due to their involvement in the October 7 events, and occasions where approving promotions was tied to the conclusion of war-related investigations.”

The argument continued into the night, with the IDF asserting that the chief of staff had attempted to schedule a discussion with Katz, but proceeded with the nominations after the ministry declined to schedule a meeting, citing time constraints.

The Ministry of Defense, in response, claimed that the IDF hadn’t provided enough time for a meeting and wanted to schedule on short notice.

Doron Kadosh, Army Radio’s military correspondent, commented that the dispute wasn’t really about appointments. Instead, this provided “a convenient battleground” for longstanding power struggles between the institutions.

“Katz has, for some time, felt that the chief of staff ‘ignores him’ and operates independently. Zamir, for his part, feels the minister is trying to obstruct him, weaken his position, and turn the army into a submissive tool,” Kadosh wrote.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid quickly seized on the opportunity to blast the government’s handling of the IDF appointments, noting that “this is not how you run a country, this is not how you lead an army.”

“In this crazy government, even a basic event like appointing officers in the IDF doesn’t go by without leaks, fights, slander and night-time announcements,” Lapid wrote in a late-night statement.

One of the most notable appointments, if approved, is the nomination of Gaza Division Commander Brig.-Gen. Barak Hiram to become the head of the Operations Division in the Operations Directorate – a stepping stone toward promotion to major-general.

Hiram was among the first senior officers on the scene on Oct. 7, 2023, and had been highly scrutinized for decisions he made during the battle at Kibbutz Be’eri.

The only brigade commander from the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel who was not promoted is former Paratrooper Brigade commander Ami Biton, who has faced multiple complaints regarding both his battlefield performance and his conduct.

“Chief of Staff Zamir is not cutting Biton any slack, is not promoting him, and is sending a clear message: there is no place in the IDF for inappropriate behavior,” Kadosh remarked.

Another message sent by Zamir, a former tank commander, is that there will be no favoritism toward certain units, unlike in the past, when the general staff was dominated by former paratroopers.

In this round, he promoted two paratroopers, three tank commanders and three officers from the Givati Brigade.