Outgoing Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned relatives of hostages still in the Gaza Strip on Thursday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was keeping troops in the enclave for no reason, according to several Israeli media outlets, hours after his dismissal .
During a meeting with the families of those kidnapped, Gallant assured that “there is nothing more to be done in Gaza. The main objectives have been achieved,” reports Israeli news channel 12.
The official, whose dismissal became effective this afternoon, also said that the president had the final say in negotiations for a hostage exchange with Hamas, and that he and military officials already believed in July that the time was optimal to arrive. an agreement, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Netanyahu announced Gallant’s dismissal Tuesday evening, after months of rumors about his intention to get rid of one of the most powerful ministers and most opposed to him on issues such as the handling of the war in Gaza, the negotiations for the release of hostages or the army. exemption for ultra-Orthodox Jews.
On the evening of his dismissal, Gallant had warned in a speech that the main reason for his dismissal was his “strong stance on universal conscription (including ultra-Orthodox Jews), his commitment to rescuing the hostages and the need to a state commission of inquiry.” until October 7.
Current Foreign Minister Israel Katz will replace Gallant as head of the defense portfolio, and former Netanyahu ally Gideon Saar, who joined the governing coalition in late September with a post of minister without portfolio, takes Katz’s place. .
The main Israeli media interpret Netanyahu’s decision as an attempt to consolidate his power over the country, at a time when Israeli forces maintain two parallel offensives (in Gaza and Lebanon) and tensions with Iran and its groups satellites continue to grow.
Gallant says goodbye, thanking the United States for its help
Outgoing Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant bid farewell to his post on Thursday, thanking the United States for “extraordinary support” for the Israeli offensive against Gaza, during a telephone interview with his American counterpart, Lloyd Austin.
“Thank you to Secretary Austin and the U.S. administration for their extraordinary support during Israel’s darkest hours,” Gallant said, referring to the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 that left some 1,200 people dead. dead and 250 injured. this caused the death of 43,469 Palestinians and the injury of 102,561 others.
Since the start of the offensive, the United States, Israel’s main ally, has spent between $17.9 and $22 billion in military aid, according to the EFE agency.
“I expressed my deep gratitude to the Secretary for his collaboration and deep commitment to defense cooperation between our countries and to the security of the State of Israel,” Gallant wrote on his account social network X (formerly Twitter). According to Gallant, ties between the two states are “fundamental to the security and prosperity of the State of Israel and the Jewish people.”
