Netanyahu's gambit: axing his own defence minster

For months, the breakdown in trust between the two men leading Israel's war effort had been an "open secret" in Israel, said Herb Keinon in The Jerusalem Post. Benjamin Netanyahu and his defence minister, Yoav Gallant, had differed over strategy throughout the conflict. Gallant had wanted to launch an assault on Hezbollah in Lebanon straight after the 7 October attacks; the PM waited nearly 11 months before doing so. In Gaza, by contrast, Gallant wanted to strike a ceasefire deal to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas – a move opposed by Netanyahu and his far-right coalition partners. But the immediate trigger for the sacking of Gallant last week had nothing to do with strategy: it was his opposition to proposals by members of Netanyahu's coalition to restore a military-service exemption for ultra-Orthodox Jews.

In sacking Gallant, Netanyahu has shown utter "contempt" for the Israeli public, said Nadav Eyal in Yedioth Ahronoth (Tel Aviv). Most Israelis strongly oppose a military exemption for ultra-Orthodox Jews – why let them be exempt when some reservists are on their third tours to Gaza or Lebanon? – and know full well Netanyahu is only considering restoring it to appease his religious-right coalition partners.

News of Gallant's sacking sparked protests in Tel Aviv, said David Horovitz in The Times of Israel (Jerusalem). Rightly so. An experienced ex-general, he commands the support of troops and is well-respected in Washington. In bowing to pressure from his coalition partners to sack him, the PM has put political survival "above the most fundamental interests of the state". And the timing could hardly have been more cynical. It came days after one of Netanyahu's aides was arrested for allegedly leaking classified documents that could have hindered a hostage deal; and hours after the findings from an investigation into "criminal incidents" that had been linked to the PM's office were made public.

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Strange that Gallant has become a "darling" of Netanyahu's critics, said Hanin Majadli in Haaretz (Tel Aviv). This is the man who allowed the "fiasco" of 7 October to happen under his watch and who, since that dreadful day, has overseen the "slaughter" of some 43,000 Palestinians in Gaza. In fact the International Criminal Court is now expected to issue a warrant to arrest him for alleged war crimes. Yet liberals see fit to fete him as a curb on the worst instincts of Netanyahu and his allies. Gallant was no moderate, agreed Al Jazeera (Doha): he is notorious for once describing Israel's opponents in Gaza as "human animals". However, his replacement, Israel Katz – a Netanyahu loyalist – could well prove to be even more hardline.

Netanyahu claims he fired Gallant because they couldn't agree over war strategies, said Attila Somfalvi in The Jerusalem Post. But that's eyewash. In reality, "the war, in its original definition, no longer exists". Gaza has been "dismantled", Hamas is "on the brink of destruction", Hezbollah's leadership has been "eliminated" and the operation on Israel's northern border is almost complete. No, the only war Netanyahu is interested in fighting now is the one aimed at ensuring his own political survival.