Israelis are awaiting a possible change at the top of the defense ministry, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering replacing incumbent Yoav Gallant with former rival Gideon Sa’ar, who is conservative but combative.
Gallant has repeatedly irked Netanyahu by opposing his government from within — and from without. It was Gallant who inflamed the public debate over judicial reform in 2023 by calling on Netanyahu to drop the reforms — while the prime minister was traveling out of the country. It was a gesture of open insubordination, stoking left-wing protests, and led Netanyahu to fire Gallant. Netanyahu later relented, but the tension between the two leaders has never ended.
In the wake of the October 7 terror attack, Netanyahu and Gallant presented a united front. (Both are facing possible charges from the International Criminal Court, which Israel and the U.S. have described as unjust.) But Gallant has spoken out publicly in favor of a hostage deal on terms favorable to Hamas, while also leaking that he supported an early attack on Hezbollah in Lebanon that Netanyahu, fearing opposition from the Biden administration, opposed.
Sa’ar has been a thorn in Netanyahu’s side for years. A former member of Netanyahu’s Likud Party, Sa’ar left and refused to join any government led by Netanyahu, contributing to instability that lasted for several election cycles. Ultimately, Sa’ar did join the emergency national unity government that lasted for several months after October 7. Sa’ar left a coalition with the main opposition party of Benny Gantz, which itself later left the unity government.
Reports suggest that Sa’ar would back a more aggressive posture in both Gaza and Lebanon, while putting the brakes on judicial reform domestically. Details have yet to be hammered out — and no agreement exists until the ink is dry.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days, available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.