During a staffing discussion held on Monday, chaired by IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, a series of senior IDF appointments were decided upon, subject to the approval of Defense Minister Israel Katz.
Before the IDF officially distributed the summary of the discussion and the list of appointments, various reports sparked the anger of Minister Katz, who firmly announced he would not approve them.
A statement from Katz’s office said: “The staffing discussion held today by the Chief of Staff was conducted contrary to the Defense Minister’s directive and without prior coordination or agreement, violating accepted procedure. Therefore, the Defense Minister has no intention of discussing or approving the appointments or names that were published. The Chief of Staff will be required to coordinate in advance with the Defense Minister before discussing these or any future appointments.”
Despite the sharply worded statement from Katz, the Chief of Staff decided to distribute the list of appointments agreed upon in the staffing discussion to the media through the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit.
The IDF statement noted: “This staffing discussion focused on operational field roles, to which brigade commanders—who have led operations in multiple combat zones since the outbreak of the war—were appointed.”
Zamir clarified: “The discussion was scheduled in advance, in accordance with regulations. The Chief of Staff is the sole authority in regulations for appointing commanders at the rank of colonel and above in the IDF. The Chief of Staff holds an orderly staffing discussion with the participation of the General Staff Forum. Afterward, the Chief of Staff decides on the appointments, which are then submitted for the minister’s approval. The minister has the authority to approve or reject them.”
The list announced by Zamir includes 14 officers promoted to the rank of brigadier general, as well as four officers elevated to colonel. Additionally, eight brigadier generals and two colonels have been reassigned to new positions, maintaining their rank but assuming new responsibilities.
Many of the promoted officers were commanders of brigades and divisions that took part in the fighting in the Gaza Strip and on other fronts.
Some of the notable appointments include:
Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram, who commanded the Gaza Division, is appointed to lead the IDF’s Operations Directorate’s Operations Division.
Brig. Gen. Manor Yanai, Chief of Staff at the Southern Command during the October 7 attack, will transition to the role of Chief of Staff for the Ground Forces.
Brig. Gen. Moran Omer, who led the 36th Division through the war, will now take charge of the Planning Directorate’s Planning Division.
Brig. Gen. Manny Liberty, formerly the head of the Military Intelligence Directorate’s Operational Operations Division, will now command the 98th Division.
Brig. Gen. Yeftah Norkin, who led the 146th Division during the war, will replace Brig. Gen. Omer as the new head of the 36th Division.
Brig. Gen. Eliad Moati, previously in charge of the Tzeelim training base, is appointed as the new commander of the 210th Division.
Col. Elad Tzuri, who led the 7th Armored Brigade during the fighting, will now head the 99th Division.
Col. Beni Aharon, commander of the 401st Armored Brigade during the war, is appointed to command the 146th Division.
Col. Liron Betito, commander of the Givati Brigade during the war, will now lead the Gaza Division.
Col. Eliav Elbaz, former head of Bahad 1 officers’ school, is appointed as the new commander of the 252nd Division.
Col. Yair Zukerman, who commanded the Nahal Brigade during the conflict, is assigned to head the prestigious Company and Battalion Commanders Course.
Col. Yaniv Barot, former commander of the Kfir Brigade, is appointed to lead the Tzeelim training base.
Col. Or Vollozinsky, who led the 188th Armored Brigade, will now head the Armored Corps.
Col. Eli David, who commanded the Yahalom combat engineering unit, will now take charge of the Combat Engineering Corps.