IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi speech to "commanders of tomorrow"

IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi gave a speech today (Sunday) to soldiers completing their infantry combat officers' course, encouraging them to accept constructive criticism, and seek victory based on given circumstances.

Here is the full translation of the speech:

Prime Minister Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Mr. Israel Katz, dear families, commanders, and especially you – the new officers, the commanders of tomorrow.

When I was a cadet – just like you, thirty-eight years ago – I had to choose a book to read and write about to my commanders in the course. I chose Truth in the Shadow of War by Yaakov Hasdai, a hero of Israel who fought in several wars, including the Yom Kippur War, after which he became a member of the Agranat Commission. "At that time," Hasdai writes, "I was filled with concern after realizing that no serious attempt had been made to understand and analyze the lessons of the war."

The book left a deep and lasting impression on me and stood before my eyes when I decided to conduct thorough investigations during the war across many arenas, in a factual and incisive manner that would enable quality and comprehensive learning. The fear of such investigations is akin to a conscious choice of future failure. Investigation is part of the military act, and through it, we learn and improve.

"Criticism," writes Hasdai, "however sharp it may be, is one of the means of strengthening and building, provided its purpose and direction are not to undermine and destroy, but to build and create." Every combat commander knows firsthand that fighting is no small matter. It involves risks and great responsibility for the lives of their subordinates. The ability to recover quickly from failure, to rise and move forward anew – that is what turns a commander into a leader and what will make their subordinates follow them without needing to be ordered.

In a place where human lives are at stake, learning is not optional. Be quick to learn. Be determined to correct. Seek constructive, strengthening criticism. That is how we operate, and that is what is expected of you as well. I recall the wonderful people who were with me in the officers' course, among them Eyal Weiss: an outstanding officer who was later killed as the commander of the Duvdevan unit while fighting terrorism in Samaria.

We were good friends: he was a secular Tel Avivian, I was a religious Jerusalemite. His home was different from the one I grew up in. Throughout the course, we had many conversations about this, including with Malka, his mother. The differences didn’t provoke criticism in me, but curiosity, and I felt that our common ground bridged any disagreement. Like you, we were young, determined soldiers, ready to give our lives for the country.

Like you, we were a sort of reflection of Israeli society, but unlike you – as young commanders, we were hardly exposed to external opinions and considerations. We encountered headlines only in the weekend newspapers, if we went home, whereas you – you are inundated with information at every moment, with alternative truths and overt criticism that deepens the controversy surrounding your actions. It’s difficult, and not right, to turn back the wheel, but I want you to know how to look at the challenges ahead with composure, clarity, and professionalism, and to learn to separate the military mission and the commanding officer from the stormy disputes. This is the unity of command.

In his vision for establishing the Hebrew battalions, Ze’ev Jabotinsky wrote, "This is one of the most beautiful ideas I have ever encountered in my life – that the Jews themselves would fight for the land of Israel." A fighting Jew was then a strange combination of words. Trumpeldor was the exception that did not prove the rule. Jabotinsky’s vision brought about change and laid the foundation for the establishment of the underground movements and later the IDF. A fighting Haredi is an uncommon pair of words, but who says a vision of our time cannot come to fruition? Who says a vision of our time cannot succeed? The clear security need obligates us to recruit as many as possible and as quickly as possible.

None of us is permitted to pass the problem on to the next generation. The time is now, and it demands courageous and decisive decisions. From its inception, the IDF has adhered to the principle of leading from the front. That’s how I was trained in the officers’ course – that’s how Eyal Weiss, of blessed memory, was killed, that’s how we fight today in the regular army and reserves, and that’s how we have achieved significant accomplishments: in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Judea and Samaria, Syria, and distant arenas.

Now more than ever, it is clear to us all that carrying out the many missions requires sharp-minded, determined, and resourceful commanders. Be proactive. Choose when to charge forward with full force and when to act responsibly and wisely, taking an extra moment to diagnose the problem and devise a solution.

Sometimes you’ll find that this makes the difference between failure and success. We’ve had many such cases in this war, for better or worse. The path to achieving results, especially in war, is not to gallop like unrestrained horses charging forward without discernment or a precise goal. Anyone who thinks a combat commander’s sole purpose is to charge ahead will have to bear the consequences and be accountable for the outcomes. As a rule, I’d prefer you choose to be horsemen: stand tall, hold the reins, and lead wisely into new challenges. If you fall – return to the reins and continue, better than before, and in any case – never forget to think. Resourcefulness and professionalism stem from thought. Never give up on it.

We are already over five hundred days into the war. In the past week, we were once again confronted with the cowardice of an enemy that chooses to hide from our fighters on the battlefield yet brutalizes the innocent, from the elderly to tender infants. In recent days, we brought back the children of the Bibas family, Kfir and Ariel, and their mother Shiri, through deception and unforgivable cruelty, alongside Oded Lifshitz, 83, one of the founders of Nir-Oz and a lover of this land.

We bow our heads before the Bibas and Lifshitz families and ask forgiveness for not succeeding in bringing their loved ones back alive. There are still 63 hostages in captivity, and we will do everything in our power to bring them all back. Dear families, those standing before you in the ranks are the officers of tomorrow. You look at them now with great pride, perhaps with concern. I thank you for the education and values you instilled – values of Zionism, mission, and excellence.

To you, course commanders – I thank you for the four months during which you accompanied the course graduates and turned them into skilled officers and quality commanders. The results of your hard work, they will demonstrate in the field. Dear graduates, you entered the officers’ course amid the war, and tomorrow you will return to the various combat zones, but this time as officers and commanders bearing greater responsibility.

You stand at the beginning of a new path, one where you will be required to translate into action all the knowledge and skills you’ve acquired in recent months, making critical and decisive decisions on the battlefield. I am proud of you for choosing to continue in meaningful service as commanders and officers in the IDF during a crucial time for our nation’s future.

Continue to act with heroism and dedication for the people and the land, carry out your missions successfully, and return home safely. We believe in you and are confident in your ability to defend the homeland and restore security. The eyes of the people of Israel look to you with pride; remember that you are the guardians of the nation and the land.

You are the generation of victory. Rise and succeed!