Ex-Israel Defense Chief Gallant Says He’s Leaving Parliament
(Bloomberg) -- Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced Wednesday that he would soon resign from parliament, a move likely to make it a bit easier for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to muster majorities in some crucial votes.
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Gallant was fired as defense minister by Netanyahu on Nov. 5, due to what the premier described as “significant gaps” between the men over the war. They had clashed over pursuing a ceasefire deal with Hamas as well as moves taken by the security cabinet. The former minister, who had kept his seat in parliament, said he would now be taking a time-out after a decade in politics.
For Netanyahu, Gallant’s resignation is good news as any replacement would be more likely to support the ruling coalition in parliament. Although on paper the coalition controls 68 of 120 seats, in practice some members have recently rebelled over budgetary and policy issues.
As a result, Netanyahu has struggled at times to muster needed votes. On Tuesday, the prime minister was rushed to parliament from a hospital, where he had undergone prostate removal surgery on Sunday, out of fear that a crucial budget law would fail without him. The law passed by a single vote. Gallant abstained.
Draft Dispute
In his speech Wednesday, Gallant said Netanyahu fired him because Gallant had been pushing to draft Orthodox Jewish men into the military. Such men were automatically exempted from service for decades, but the long war that followed Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks has changed some attitudes toward the exception.
Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, who replaced Gallant, have been pushing against the expanded draft, as some Orthodox politicians have threatened to topple the government if their constituents are forced into military service.
The prime minister has several weeks to reach agreements with them, otherwise they may withdraw their support for the 2025 budget, which, if it fails to pass by March 31, would automatically topple the government.
Gallant, 66, said in a televised statement that during his time in the defense ministry he led the security establishment to military victories on seven fronts.
“Throughout the war, I insisted on maintaining and deepening the strategic partnership with our great ally the US. Even in a time of political discord, there is no substitute for this alliance, which provides us with military aid, international support and creates deterrence in the Middle East,” he said
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