A Timeline of Clashes Between Netanyahu and Gallant, Israel’s Former Defense Minister
Yoav Gallant, the ousted cabinet minister, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had sharp public disagreements over Israel’s war against Hamas and what will follow it.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Tuesday dismissed his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, as the country fights a two-front war and waits for the results of a pivotal U.S. presidential election.
In a video statement, Mr. Netanyahu said that the critical trust needed between a leader and defense minister — in a time of war, especially — no longer existed between him and Mr. Gallant. He said the two had worked well together in the early months of the war but that in recent months relations had broken down.
Mr. Gallant, who has argued for a cease-fire deal in Gaza that would secure the release of hostages held there, said he was fired for three primary reasons: he had called for universal conscription, prioritized the return of hostages still being held in Gaza and demanded an independent commission to investigate security failures that led to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.
But Mr. Netanyahu has fired Mr. Gallant before — and then un-fired him — and there have been many public disagreements between the two men, who both belong to the Likud party. Here are some of the high-profile clashes between Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Gallant that led up to today’s events.
Conscription of the ultra-Orthodox
In June, the Israeli Supreme Court ordered an end to a longstanding exemption from mandatory military service for the country’s ultra-Orthodox Jews. Mr. Gallant approved initial conscription orders for thousands of ultra-Orthodox men.