Zamir taps new IDF Ground Forces chief of staff amid uncertainty as Katz delays appointments of officers to key roles

The IDF Ground Forces is in a state of uncertainty as Defense Minister Israel Katz has delayed the appointment of officers to key roles, leading Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir to carry out temporary appointments to fill some of the gaps.

In September, Katz refused to approve the appointment of Brig. Gen. Manor Yanai as the chief of staff at the Ground Forces to replace Maj. Gen. Rami Abudraham, who was promoted to chief of the Technological and Logistics Directorate.

Yanai was previously chief of staff at the Southern Command, serving in the role since before the October 7, 2023, attack. But his role is largely administrative and focuses on building up forces, not deploying them.

Katz has said he will not approve the promotion of any senior officer who served in the Southern Command on October 7, despite Zamir recently deciding — based on an external review of the IDF’s October 7 probes — that there is no issue with promoting Yanai.

As a result, the Ground Forces has been without a chief of staff since September, delaying critical planning processes.

Zamir has forgone trying to get Yanai’s promotion approved and instead quietly appointed Brig. Gen. Yair Natans, the chief of the Artillery Corps, to serve as the next Ground Forces chief of staff.

The IDF made no formal announcement of Natans’s appointment, but rather only mentioned it in a press release on the handover of the Artillery Corps chief role, which took place yesterday.

Natans was replaced by Brig. Gen. Ehud Bibi, who, according to the IDF’s announcement, will serve as acting Artillery Corps chief until a permanent appointment is made.

Bibi served as the head of the Ground Forces’ personnel division, which now leaves another critical position vacant.

Natans will enter the role of Ground Forces chief of staff in the coming weeks, the IDF says.