According to a statement released by the office of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, Netanyahu appointed Foreign Minister Israel Katz as the replacement for the removed Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, and Gideon Saar will take on the role of the new Foreign Minister.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday. Katz is reportedly a longtime ally and supporter of Netanyahu.
A member of Netanyahu's ruling Likud Party in which he was previously a President of the party's convention, Katz has filled multiple Cabinet roles since 2003.
As the Foreign Minister, Katz also drew international attention for sharp attacks on world leaders and international organizations that had expressed objections to Israeli military actions, primarily in Gaza.
He led a diplomatic fight against the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees, and last month Israel's Parliament banned the agency from working in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem.
On Monday, Katz instructed his Ministry to formally notify the United Nations that Israel was cancelling its agreements with UNRWA.
Last month, Katz caused an outrage when he declared UN Chief Antonio Guterres "persona non-grata in Israel" and wrote on X that he would not let him enter the country.
Before becoming Foreign Minister, Katz's most memorable role was as Transport Minister.
He served in the role for a decade from 2009 to 2019 but has also held the Energy and Finance portfolios in various Netanyahu Cabinets.
Netanyahu on Tuesday appointed Gideon Saar as the country's new Foreign Minister after his predecessor Israel Katz took up the Defence Minister position.
"I spoke today with Minister Gideon Saar and offered him and his faction to join the coalition and take on the position of Foreign Minister," Netanyahu said in a statement from his office.
Gideon Saar is the current member of Knesset for New Hope, an Israeli politician. Between 1995 and 1997, he served as an aide to the Attorney General. He was made Cabinet Secretary in 1999 and again in 2001.
He was first elected for the Knesset on 2003 from being a Likud party representative. Saar had this position until 2014. During this term he served as Education Minister in 2009 up until 2013 and held an office of Interior Minister, from 2013 and up to 2014.
Saar resigned in September 2014. Two years from the day Saar vacated the political arena, he declared his return to the fray and his Likud primary candidacy. He returned to the Knesset in 2019 and sought to unseat Netanyahu as leader of the Likud.
He later founded his party, New Hope, and served as Minister of Justice from 2021 to 2022 and Deputy Prime Minister in 2021 in the Thirty-sixth government.
In 2022, Saar formed an electoral alliance with Benny Gantz's Blue and White, which is known as National Unity. In the 2022 election, he returned to the opposition as part of the coalition. After the Israel–Hamas war, National Unity joined the coalition, and Saar was appointed Minister without portfolio. He was also appointed as an observer in the Israeli war cabinet.
In March 2024, Saar withdrew New Hope from National Unity, and then from the coalition, and resigned as Minister. He joined the Israeli Cabinet in September this year.
Read also| Netanyahu Dismisses Israel's Defence Minister Gallant, Cites 'Lack of Trust' Amid War
Read also| EAM Jaishankar Says US Will Become More Isolationist Regardless of Election Outcome
