Sa’ar abandons pursuit of defense minister role as Lebanon fighting escalates
Confirming PM offered that he replace Gallant, New Hope chief says it is inappropriate given the circumstances; does not shut door on entering coalition in another role
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
MK Gideon Sa’ar announced on Saturday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had offered him the role of defense minister in order to bring his party into the coalition, but said he could not accept the position amid the significant escalation of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
His announcement followed months of speculation on reported contacts between the two, and came days after widespread reports emerged that a dismissal of current Defense Minister Yoav Gallant was imminent, with Sa’ar set to replace him.
But the plans appeared to have been sidelined by a week of major developments in the conflict in the north, massive attacks suffered by Hezbollah and expectations that the terror group could soon retaliate against Israel, amid fears of a full-scale war.
Despite turning down the defense minister’s post, Sa’ar did not rule out joining the government in another capacity, while vowing to continue promoting his security vision.
In a lengthy post on Telegram, Sa’ar said he had agreed to take the job “about a week ago,” but explained he had changed his mind in light of the latest developments on the northern border.
“I do not want the minds of those who bear the burden of managing the campaign at this time to be distracted for an indefinite period of time by [my] candidacy,” he said, adding that it would be inappropriate to make Gallant manage the current security situation while his replacement was sitting “on the shelf,” waiting to take over.
“I will always strengthen Israel” and will “never be among those who weaken it,” he added.
Some commentators speculated that Sa’ar was cutting his losses after suffering a major public backlash over the plan and with a switch now appearing unlikely in the near future as the region faces a potentially expanding conflict.
Saturday evening saw Israel carry out widespread airstrikes on Hezbollah sites and rocket launchers in southern Lebanon which the army said came after the military identified preparations to launch major rocket attacks.
The escalation comes on the heels of statements by senior Israeli officials last week suggesting a full-on war with Hezbollah was brewing in the wake of two waves of explosions of communications devices used by Hezbollah across Lebanon — as well as Friday’s IDF strike on Beirut which took out top Hezbollah commanders.
The IDF's widespread airstrikes in Lebanon this evening come after the military identified Hezbollah preparations to launch major rocket attacks.
The strikes are targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers and other sites. https://t.co/S4JSNFmFi0 pic.twitter.com/SurCE4Aidg
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) September 21, 2024
Ending the speculation
Rumors that Netanyahu would replace Gallant have been circulating for months, with Sa’ar denying as early as July that he had received an offer that would bring him back into the coalition.
The former Likud lawmaker and minister joined the coalition as part of the National Unity alliance with Benny Gantz following the October 7 Hamas invasion and slaughter in southern Israel. But Sa’ar New Hope quit the alliance with Gantz in March and weeks later announced his party’s departure from the government, after his demand to be admitted to the now-defunct high-level war cabinet was denied. He has since harshly criticized the government’s conduct of the war in Gaza and has said he would be willing to make “concessions” to create a right-wing bloc opposing Netanyahu.
According to Hebrew media reports, talks between Sa’ar and Netanyahu broke down last month after the premier’s wife and advisers indicated they would not trust Sa’ar as defense minister, but contacts were subsequently reestablished, with Sa’ar and Netanyahu meeting in person to discuss the matter.
Under the proposed deal to bring New Hope back into the coalition, Netanyahu was said to have been ready to give Sa’ar a veto over moves related to his coalition’s controversial judicial overhaul, as well as a say in the choice of the next chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces.
He was also told that if the defense minister role did not pan out, he could receive the foreign minister role, while Israel Katz would take over for Gallant.
A spokesman for Sa’ar did not reply to a request for comment, while New Hope MK Ze’ev Elkin declined to discuss Saturday’s announcement, saying that it “spoke for itself.”
Relations between Gallant and Netanyahu have been tense ever since Netanyahu announced he was firing Gallant in March 2023 over his criticism of the judicial overhaul. But he soon walked back the move under intense public pressure.
At the time, Sa’ar harshly criticized Netanyahu for the action, tweeting that the prime minister was pushing Israel “into the abyss.”
Members of Netanyahu’s cabinet have been calling for Gallant’s termination for months, angered, among other things, by his opposition to an ultra-Orthodox military enlistment bill backed by the government and his public break with the prime minister over a proposed hostage deal and the premier’s demand to retain control over Gaza’s Philadelphi Corridor under any deal.
A debate over qualifications
Critics have denounced the prime minister and Sa’ar for seeking to oust the defense minister in the middle of a war, noting that the latter has no substantial security expertise and accusing them of agreeing to work together on legislation that would enable the ultra-Orthodox to evade military conscription.
In a tweet on Thursday, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid claimed that Sa’ar’s appointment was “an attempt by the ultra-Orthodox parties to appoint a defense minister on their behalf,” prompting Sa’ar to angrily reply that he had more defense experience than Lapid — and to state that Lapid had himself offered him the defense portfolio during coalition negotiations in 2021.
Sa’ar has denied reports that he had been in touch with the Knesset’s Haredi parties in order to reach a compromise on the conscription of the ultra-Orthodox community, to smooth his way into the coalition.
Lapid on Saturday evening met with top opposition figures including Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman and National Unity MKs Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, without Sa’ar. A spokesman for Liberman said that the meeting had been called to “coordinate moves and [receive] updates.”
Gantz has previously stated that replacing Gallant “endangers Israel’s security in the most tangible way I can remember by a prime minister — during a war and in general.”
According to a Channel 12 poll published on Friday, only four percent of Israelis believe Sa’ar would be most suited for the job at this time.
Seventy-two percent of respondents also said that if Sa’ar chose to enter the government it would be for his personal benefit, compared to 12% who believed he would be doing so for the benefit of the country.
Despite the criticism and his decision not to take the job, Sa’ar on Saturday argued that he was qualified for it, stating that he had a “deep familiarity with Israel’s national security challenges” based on his time serving in the security cabinet and the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. He said Israel requires “an up-to-date security concept” and a rebuilding of the armed forces to allow it to meet future challenges.
Without naming Gallant, he argued that a veteran of the security establishment, “contaminated with failed concepts,” cannot be the person to enact the necessary changes to the military.
“The greatest military and strategic disasters in the history of the State of Israel occurred under defense ministers who were IDF alumni,” including October 7, he added.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum welcomed Sa’ar’s announcement, stating that an opponent of a hostage deal “cannot serve as Israel’s defense minister and cannot lead the Israel Defense Forces, whose entire ethos is based on mutual obligation and the imperative to leave nobody behind.”
