When your Defense Minister starts publicly pushing for an exit strategy from Gaza while others are doubling down on an indefinite military presence, something's got to give.
And that something gave last night, when, out of the blue, Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Gallant. Ok, so it wasn't exactly a shock because he has been wanting to get rid of Gallant for ages.
In fact, last March, when Netanyahu tried to fire Gallant over the judicial reform protests, the public wouldn't have it. But things are different now.
Here's what's really going on: Gallant, the former general who's seen his share of combat, has been increasingly vocal about the need to wind down the massive military operation in Gaza.
We are now looking at a completely different ballgame. Katz is known for taking harder lines, and putting him in charge of defense would send a clear message: we're not going anywhere, international pressure be damned.
Think about what this means for our troops on the ground. Right now, many of them share Gallant's view - they want to know there's an endgame, a light at the end of the tunnel. They're not questioning the mission, but they're asking the reasonable question: how long can we keep this up?
For the thousands of reservists currently serving - many of whom have been away from their families since October 7th - this isn't just political theater. Gallant's push for an exit strategy reflected what many of them are thinking: we'll serve as long as needed, but we need to know there's a plan.
Sure, Israel Katz served in the paratroopers, but running the Defense Ministry during wartime is a different beast entirely. He will also need to build relationships with the U.S. military brass and other defense ministers (and that's not something anyone can do overnight.)
Gallant did his best, but at the end of the day, what he wanted did not align with what Netanyahu and the rest of the government wanted.
Farewell, Yoav Gallant. And welcome to our new Defense Minster (who until yesterday was FM) Katz. You are facing a tough challenge and we just hoipe you're up for the job.
