Brigadier General A. assumed the position of head of the Operations Division in the IDF Intelligence Directorate (Aman), replacing Brigadier General Meni Liberty, who completed two years in the role and will continue serving as commander of the 98th Division.
The change-of-command ceremony was held at Camp Rabin, led by Deputy Chief of Staff Major General Tamir Yadai and the head of the Intelligence Directorate, Major General Shlomi Binder, with members of the General Staff Forum, commanders, and family members in attendance.
Binder described the Operations Division as one of the foundations of the Intelligence Directorate and said that over the past two and a half years the division had dealt with: “A multi-front war across seven arenas, ground maneuvers in four of them, the return of the hostages, special operations, two campaigns against Iran, operations in Yemen against the Houthis, and an enormous variety of additional operational and intelligence challenges."
Binder praised Meni Liberty for leading the division during an especially challenging period following the October 7 attack: “From the very first moment, Meni’s leadership, determination, and extraordinary ability to mobilize people toward a shared mission stood out. Through hard work and an uncompromising focus on the mission, Meni led the division through a process of directing and fulfilling the missions of the Intelligence Directorate while also leading the necessary changes in the division in light of the lessons of October 7. Under his leadership, the division became a leading and influential force in confronting the many challenges faced by the Intelligence Directorate and the IDF."
Turning to the incoming division commander, Binder said: “We have known each other for many years. I have seen you command daring and dangerous operations. You are entering stormy waters, but I am completely confident that you are the right person in the right place and that you will excel in the Intelligence Directorate as well. Your leadership, judgment, sharp thinking, professionalism, and belief in cooperation-all these will help you succeed in this complex position. Behind you stands the division, excellent people, and alongside you is the senior command forum of the Intelligence Directorate."
Liberty summarized his time in office and said that when he assumed the position, he committed himself to helping the IDF strike anyone who had harmed Israel.
“Along the way there were ups and downs, achievements and failures. I choose here to mention the thing that gives me the greatest pride. We all worked together as one body within the Intelligence Directorate-between Aman and the Air Force and Navy, with the branches and commands, and between Aman and our dear colleagues in the Shin Bet and Mossad," he said.
Addressing his successor, Liberty said: “We have known each other for many years. You are the best of the best. No one is happier than I am that you are the one stepping onto the locomotive, to lead and to be a teammate together with the wonderful group that came to honor us at this occasion. I wish you all the success in the world-and then some."
The incoming head of the Operations Division addressed the failures of October 7 in his speech, saying: “A war that began with a conceptual, intelligence, and operational failure. On the morning of Simchat Torah, October 7, the Intelligence Directorate failed in its most important mission-to warn of war-and thereby failed to fulfill its purpose as the first line of defense of the State of Israel."
He added: “It is our duty to remember the failure, to act with the awareness that this can happen on our watch as well, and to continue the work of correction and implementing the lessons learned. This is the command of the hour."
Brigadier General A. said that he was accepting command of the division: “With reverence and a deep sense of mission. I pledge to act with determination, humility, and wisdom, and to invest all of myself in order to fulfill my responsibility in the best possible way, to be worthy of the role, and to be worthy of you as a commander."