Just before a decision: what do we know about the "combatant" who designated Gantz for the position of Chief of Staff?

If there are no last-minute surprises, Gantz will in the coming days announce Major General Herzi Halevi as the 23rd Chief of Staff of the IDF - after a tortuous race seasoned with political-legal storms.

In the army, he is described as cold-blooded, brave, and as someone who opposed the release of terrorist-murderers.

And how will he deal with the challenges that Kochavi leaves for him?

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31/07/2022

Sunday, July 31, 2022, 06:45

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On video: Gantz refers to the appointment of the next chief of staff (video: streaming)

Defense Minister Benny Gantz is expected to announce in the coming days Major General Herzi Halevi, Deputy Chief of Staff, as the next Chief of the General Staff of the IDF.

This announcement, when it arrives, will mark a tortuous race seasoned with political-legal storms, some of which are still reverberating.

In the last few days, Gantz's office announced that he had finished the round of consultations, after meeting former senior IDF officials in the defense establishment, so the decision on the identity of the 23rd Chief of Staff is a matter of days.

At the same time, it is important to note that in Gantz's environment, preparations are being made for the Likud to appeal to the High Court at the last minute against Gantz's decision.

While Gantz is inclined to choose Allof Halevi, throughout the race for the position of Chief of the General Staff, opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu expressed support for General Eyal Zamir. Factors involved in the process The choice said this week that while Netanyahu is busy influencing the identity of the Chief of Staff so that he will be committed to him, Gantz has both options open.

More in Walla!

• Gantz narrowed down the list of candidates for the position of Chief of Staff: Herzi Halevi versus Eyal Zamir

Hertzi Halevi (photo: IDF spokesman)

Halevi, who is defined as the leading candidate in Gantz's eyes, is seen as part of the "fraternity of the paratroopers" at the General Staff. Although he is not identified with the "red beret clique" at the top of the General Staff, he certainly speaks their language and thinks according to the same patterns of thought. The same patterns he recognized at the beginning of his service the military in the Paratroopers and since then held a series of positions in the Paratroopers Brigade: MP in the 101st Battalion, the commander of the anti-tank company in the patrol battalion of the Paratroopers.

His personality profile, cold-hearted and brave, and his operational experience in southern Lebanon in the security zone caught the eye of Doron Avital, the commander of a patrol at the General Staff at the time, who initially integrated him as a training officer, and then led complex operations deep in enemy territory as a "commander".

Time passed, and Levy was integrated into the special operations (MM) of AMAN in units whose operations are not publicized except after malfunctions.

More in Walla!

Gantz will begin the process of appointing a Chief of Staff; the candidates: Generals Zamir, Halevi and Stryk

To the full article

Benny Gantz (Photo: Flash 90, Olivier Fitosi)

As far as Halevi and his commanders are concerned, he fulfilled the duties by the book and advanced unusually, as an officer who grew up outside the unit, to the position of deputy commander of a general patrol, and in the following years he participated in operations far from the state's borders, including the kidnapping of Mustafa Dirani, which was intended to help locate information about the captive navigator Ron Arad. At the beginning of the second intifada, when the IDF was deeply immersed in fighting in the territories of Judea and Samaria,

then

Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz appointed him commander of a patrol of the IDF, promoted him to the rank of lieutenant colonel, and tasked him with complex operations in the heart of the nests of Palestinian terror.

The Chief of Staff at the time, Moshe Bogie promoted him to the rank of lieutenant colonel and sent him to study in the United States along with military rest.

In 2005, he returned and was appointed as the commander of the Menashe Brigade, which required constant activity against terrorist nests in the refugee camp in Jenin.

So, in the rooms, he opposed the release of terrorists with blood on their hands into Yosh territories in exchange for the release of the soldier this week Gilad Shalit.

Netanyahu (Photo: Reuven Castro)

In 2007 he was appointed to the paratrooper brigade and a year later he led the Red Brigade to Operation Cast Lead in the northern Gaza Strip. In 2009 he was appointed head of the operating brigade, and as someone who knew the IDF patrol well and the formation of the IDF he had a significant contribution in synchronizing the units and the IDF effort Lee in countering terrorism and at the beginning of the campaign between the wars with an emphasis on the effort of Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas in the Middle East.

In 2011 he was appointed commander of Uzbat HaGalil, and three years later he was appointed commander of the FOM despite Netanyahu's demands. In 2014, after Operation Tzuk Eitan, he was appointed head of the AMN.

In 2018 he was appointed commander of the Southern Command and about a year ago he was appointed to the position of Deputy Chief of Staff. General Halevi is not an extroverted figure in the General Staff, a quiet figure, opinionated, knows how to stand his ground, his moves are sometimes seasoned with cynicism but also with wit.

The assessment at the top of the IDF is that if he is appointed to the position of Chief of Staff - he will continue in the line of Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi, who surrounds the operational activity with high-tech and multi-armed means in a way that supports more airstrikes and less land maneuvering.

Eyal Zamir (Photo: Reuven Castro)

Opposite Halevi, stands the "underdog" - General Eyal Zamir, who is waiting for Gantz's decision.

It can be said that if Binyamin Netanyahu were sitting in the Prime Minister's Office today, Zamir's chances of being appointed to the position would be higher.

Eyal Zamir was born and grew up in Eilat, like R.A. Gadi Eisenkot, but his eventful life passed through the Armored Corps and was less flashy as a tank commander and an armor officer. He was an MP in the 500th Brigade and the 460th Brigade. In the early 1990s, he was the AGM officer of the 7th Brigade. the famous one, and then was appointed as the 75th Brigade in the 7th Brigade. After commanding the School of Armor, he went to study in France, and when he returned, he was appointed as the General Officer Commanding of the Steel Design and as the 656th Brigadier General in the reserves, which he led to fight in Operation Protective Wall in the dense and complex Jenin sector. At the beginning of the second intifada he commanded the tactical training center in Tzalim, and in 2003 he closed a circle and commanded the 7th Brigade.

After the Second Lebanon War he commanded Division 143, Battalion Commanders Course, and after Operation Cast Lead he was appointed commander of Division 36, after about three years he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Land Arm and advanced to the position of Netanyahu's Military Secretary and upon its completion was appointed Commander of the Southern Command.

In the winter of 2018, he was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff and towards the end of his term, he led the treatment of Corona and the synchronization with all civil bodies. After finishing his position, he flew to study in the USA.

General Zamir is known as a very popular officer in the General Staff, very systematic and orderly, specializes in leading processes, order and organization, and according to estimates his chances of getting the position are very low.

If he accepts the position of Chief of Staff, sources at the top of the IDF estimate, he will place an emphasis on the ground maneuver that has lost its value in recent years, and will return to the roots of the training methods and sharpness required of the ground forces in the combination of advanced technology.

About a decade ago, he led the implementation of the digital land army systems that the IDF is proud of today.

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• Hertzi Halevi

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