Thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets in central Tel Aviv to protest against the abrupt dismissal of defence minister Yoav Gallant amid Israel‘s ongoing war in Gaza and Lebanon.
Mr Gallant, a popular minister and provocateur, was fired by prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu due to “significant gaps” and a “crisis of trust” that affected the war.
Both men have repeatedly been at odds over the war in Gaza. Mr Gallant was replaced by Israel Katz – an incumbent foreign minister and a longtime loyalist of Mr Netanyahu.
“Unfortunately, although in the first months of the campaign there was such trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defense minister,” the prime minister said.
A grassroots forum representing hostage families said Mr Gallant’s dismissal was “a direct continuation of the ‘efforts’ to torpedo the abductee deal”.
Shortly after, thousands of protesters gathered in central Tel Aviv, blocked the city’s main highway, and staged protests holding blue and white Israeli flags. Protesters carried posters that read “We want better leaders”, while some lit bonfires in the middle of the highway bringing traffic to a standstill.
The former defence minister said on social media, “Security of the State of Israel was and will always remain the mission of my life” as protests against his firing ensued on Tuesday night.
Israel’s president Issac Herzog called Mr Gallant’s firing “the last thing Israel needs” as opposition leader Yair Lapir lamented the move as “an act of madness”.
“Netanyahu is selling Israel’s security and the Israeli army soldiers for a disgraceful political survival,” Mr Lapir said on X.
Israeli TV stations showed police scuffling with protesters who blocked roads in several other spots across the country.
The dismissal comes at a time when Israel is facing growing pressure over its extended military offensive in the Middle East, which experts fear could potentially expand into full-scale war.
Israel’s year-long war in Gaza has killed more than 43,000 Palestinians and wounded more than 100,000 others, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. The attack on Gaza began after Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on 7 October last year, killing around 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages.
Israel has since launched an assault on Lebanon and bombed Syria and Iran as well for backing the militant groups. Hundreds of Israeli soldiers have been killed in the fighting.
Iran has vowed to avenge an Israeli strike that came in response to a 1 October Iranian missile attack, itself a reprisal for earlier Israeli attacks on Iranian-linked targets.
Israeli police on Tuesday arrested more than two dozen protesters, the Haaretz reported. The police also fired water cannons to disperse the crowd from a prominent freeway during the nationwide protests that continued till the early hours of Wednesday.
Protesters pressed the Israeli government to rescue what they described as the “forgotten hostages” and called for a day of “civil strike” starting Wednesday. The crowd chanted “Netanyahu is endangering the soldiers”.
“We are not waiting for the heads of the economy and labor union, starting tomorrow, and without a time limit we are stopping the country,” protest organisations said in a statement, according to the Jerusalem Post.
A previous attempt by Mr Netanyahu to fire Mr Gallant in March 2023 sparked widespread street protests against the prime minister.
Mr Gallant in a late-night news conference revealed he disagreed with the prime minister over three main issues: the need to end controversial exemptions from the military draft for ultra-Orthodox men, the urgent need for a hostage deal and the need to establish an official commission of inquiry into the political and security failures on 7 October.
Israel estimates that about 100 hostages remain in captivity, only about 65 of them still alive.
A day earlier, Mr Gallant announced he had sent thousands of draft notices to young ultra-Orthodox men, who were previously exempted from joining the mandatory military draft.
Channel 13 TV said Mr Netanyahu had also taken advantage of the US election, when American attention is focused elsewhere, to dismiss his rival.
The White House declined to comment on the firing but called Mr Gallant “an important partner on all matters related to the defense of Israel”.
“As close partners, we will continue to work collaboratively with Israel’s next minister of defense,” the White House National Security Council said.