Katz okays most senior IDF picks after clash with chief of staff — but rejects two

Defense Minister Israel Katz on Sunday approved most of the names on a list of senior military appointments that were announced by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir four weeks ago, a move that led to a public clash between the two.

The military said Katz approved the list, except for two names: Brig. Gen. Eliad Moati, who was set to command the 210th Division, and Brig. Gen. Manor Yanai, who was appointed by Zamir as chief of staff at the Ground Forces.

Moati is a former commander of the Border Defense Corps, a unit responsible for the IDF’s surveillance soldiers, many of whom were killed and abducted during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught that began the war in Gaza. He had entered the role only a week before the massacre. Since then, Moati had been appointed to head the Tzeelim training base, a decision Katz approved.

Yanai is chief of staff at the Southern Command, serving in the role since before the October 7, 2023, attack. His role focuses on building up forces.

Last month, Katz said he would not approve the appointments of officers potentially involved in the failures surrounding October 7 until the IDF completes its internal investigations, sparking a public feud with Zamir.

Katz slammed the military chief for making the appointments, claiming Zamir announced them without consulting him. At the end of the month, the two announced that they had reached an understanding on the army’s appointment process.

Meanwhile, retired senior police officer Yoram Halevi has been appointed as the next chief of Israel’s liaison body to the Palestinians, the military and Katz announced Sunday.

Halevi was selected to head the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) by Katz and Zamir. It is unprecedented for a former senior police officer to be given a top role in the Israel Defense Forces.

Katz’s office said the defense minister interviewed several candidates for the role, “and after consideration, it was decided to appoint Halevi to the position.”

He will replace Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian, who has served in the role for nearly four and a half years.

The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories is responsible for Israel’s day-to-day management of civilian affairs in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, including the entry of humanitarian aid and other goods into the Strip.

Deputy Commissioner (ret.) Halevi previously headed the Israel Police’s Jerusalem and Southern districts, the Border Police, the Lahav 433 major crimes unit, and the elite Yamam counterterrorism unit, and served in other top roles.

His son, Chief Inspector Yitav Lev Halevi, 28, a commander in the elite Yamam counter-terrorism unit, was killed during a battle with Palestinian gunmen during a raid in the West Bank in May 2024.

“Halevi has extensive experience by virtue of the many roles he has filled in the past with great distinction in the Israel Police, including as commander of the Jerusalem District,” Katz said in a statement. Using the biblical term for the West Bank, he added, “He is very familiar with the Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria and with the Palestinian issue, and I am convinced he will carry out the role in the best possible way.”

Halevi will be awarded the rank of major general upon taking the helm of COGAT and will join the IDF’s General Staff Forum.

Alian, the first Druze officer to command the Golani Brigade, was the third IDF major general from the Druze community, after his predecessor, Kamil Abu Rukun, and Yousef Mishleb, who served as head of COGAT from 2003 to 2008.