Israel army chief Herzi Halevi resigns days after ceasefire deal with Hamas due to…, but who will replace him?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declined to take responsibility for those failures.

Tel Aviv: Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi has offered his resignation. He sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday, 21 January 2025 announcing that he would resign on March 6 after a term of two years and two months. He has been appointed to the position of IDF Chief of Staff for a three-year term.

“I will transfer command of the IDF in a high-quality and thorough manner to my successor,” wrote Halevi.

In the letter, released by the military, Halevi said, “As a result of my responsibility for the IDF’s failure on October 7, and at a time when the military has recorded exceptional achievements in restoring Israel’s deterrence and strength, I wish to conclude my tenure on March 6, 2025.”

Katz had given Halevi a deadline of January 30 to complete internal military probes into the failure to prevent Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack.

It is t be noted that Halevi’s resignation marks the highest-profile departure of an Israeli official linked to the security establishment’s failures on October 7. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declined to take responsibility for those failures, stating that accountability will come only after the war, reports CNN.

Resigned as promised: Halevi

Halevi stated that he is resigning as per his promise from October 2023, taking responsibility for the failure on October 7, 2023. Hamas had attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Despite that failure, Halevi mentioned his and the IDF’s recent successes, which include military operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, against the Assad regime in Syria, against Iran, and forcing Hamas into a hostage exchange deal that began this week.

Cites his achievements

Halevi said that during his tenure, the IDF has succeeded in significantly reducing terrorism in the West Bank, allowing the Israeli army to focus most of its efforts on two major fronts against Hamas and Hezbollah. Halevi acknowledged that the country’s war objectives are still open, which include eliminating Hamas’s political control over Gaza and bringing back the remaining 94 hostages from their captivity.