Ex-Defense Minister MK Yoav Gallant (Likud) announced on Wednesday that he will resign from the Knesset.
"Soon I will notify the Knesset Speaker of my decision to terminate my position in the 25th Knesset, after 45 years of service. I served the state for 35 years in the IDF, a decade in the government and Knesset. This is a long stop on a route that has not concluded.
He emphasized that he would not leave the Likud. "The way of Likud is my way, I believe in the party and trust its members and voters. Since the first time I voted for the Likud and was part of Menachem Begin's upset victory, I remained loyal to the movement's nationalistic and idealistic way."
According to him, "This is a stop in a long journey that has not ended. Just like on the battlefield, in public service there are moments when you have to stop so you can reach the needed targets."
A month and a half ago, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed Gallant from his post as Defense Minister and replaced him with Minister Israel Katz.
After being dismissed from his ministerial position, Gallant stated: "I told the Prime Minister that my order of priorities is fixed - the State of Israel, the IDF and the defense system, and only after that comes everything else, including my personal future.
Gallant claimed: "These dismissals come as a result of a dispute over three issues - my firm stance that every young man should serve in the IDF."
"A discriminatory and corrupt law must not be allowed to pass in the Israeli Knesset," he said in reference to the issue of haredi recruitment to the IDF.
The second issue that Gallant believes led to his dismissal is "our moral and ethical obligation to return our sons and daughters - by virtue of my role and my experience - I state that this is achievable. It is possible to return the hostages, it involves compromises, some of them painful, the State of Israel will know how to meet these compromises."
"There will be no atonement for the [failure to secure the] release of the hostages. This will be a Mark of Cain on whoever will lead the policy," he added.
The third reason, according to Gallant, is "the need to learn lessons and find out the truth in a state commission of inquiry. I have been responsible for the security system for the past two years, for the successes and for the failures."
"Throughout my years in the water, underwater, in the air, and on land, I have learned that it is obligatory to navigate using a compass. In times of darkness like now, I call on the elected officials to do so. It is ethically and morally correct. I wish to salute the families of the hostages, the bereaved families, the soldiers, and the wounded. I salute you," Gallant concluded.