Military attaché to US named, filling six-month-old vacancy

Rear Adm. Tal Politis has been appointed by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir as Israel’s next defense attaché to the United States, after the role was vacant for some six months.

Politis will be promoted to the rank of vice admiral, the naval equivalent of major general, upon entering the role. He most recently served as chief of staff at the Navy.

Maj. Gen. Hidai Zilberman completed his term as defense attaché in December, but no replacement was named due to disagreements between Defense Minister Israel Katz and Zamir.

Katz had sought to promote his own military secretary, Brig. Gen. Guy Markizeno, but Zamir did not believe he would be a good fit for the role.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Markizeno would be his next military secretary, which includes a promotion to the rank of major general, something that Katz has sought for months.

Additionally, Zamir says he has appointed Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram, the commander of the Gaza Division, to head the Operations Division, another vacant role.

Brig. Gen. Yisrael Shomer suddenly stepped down as Operations Division head this week and retired from the military after being suspected of “moral offenses.”

Hiram is known for his controversial involvement in the battle at Kibbutz Be’eri during the October 7 onslaught, including decisions that risked the lives of hostages. An IDF tactical investigation has since cleared him of any wrongdoing.

The appointments of Politis and Hiram were approved by Katz, the military says.