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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday firmly rejected any notion of soldiers defying orders from the defense minister and military chief after a video circulated online of a supposed IDF reservist demanding that the cabinet member retract his comments about the future of Gaza, which has created tensions in the government.
In the video, a man identifying himself as a reservist calls on Mr. Netanyahu to dismiss Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over his statements warning that Israel must find a way to hand over power to a governing entity in the Gaza Strip.
After the prime minister's son, Yair Netanyahu, shared the clip on his Telegram channel saying "We won't listen to Gallant or the chief of staff – only to Netanyahu," the prime minister's office issued a stern rebuke.
"The prime minister has repeatedly warned of the dangers of insubordination and the permissive approach toward it," his office said. "The prime minister is consistent in this position. He categorically rejects any manifestation of insubordination by anyone and expects all systems to deal with them equally."
Minister without portfolio Benny Gantz, who leads the State Party that has joined the government after the war broke out despite being against Netanyahu, called on Netanyahu to unequivocally condemn the video advocating defiance of military orders.
"In the Israel Defense Forces, as the army of the people, soldiers from all parts of Israeli society serve, with a variety of views and beliefs," Mr. Gantz said. "But there is only one supreme command echelon: the chief of staff. Expressing support for a call to rebellion during wartime and in general, as in the video published yesterday, harms Israel's security."
He added, "I call on the prime minister to condemn the rebellion video clearly and firmly, and not to hide behind a laundering of words. That is what the entire leadership in Israel should do."
The Israeli military police said on Saturday that they would open an investigation into a video circulated online showing a masked man identifying himself as a reservist calling for defiance of orders if control of the Gaza Strip is handed over to an "Arab entity."
Yair Netanyahu, the son of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, shared the video on his Telegram channel with around 15,000 subscribers yesterday. In it, the masked, furious-looking man holding a rifle says: "Gallant cannot command us, we will not listen to him or to the chief of staff – only to Netanyahu."
The video, first posted by Channel 14 anchor Yanon Magal, includes a threat against Gallant: "Either you change your rhetoric and understand that we want to win, or we will only go with the prime minister. Only whoever decides that we need to win, only him will we follow. You wanted a military coup? We'll show you what real Jews winning looks like," the speaker said, his identity concealed by the mask.
The man also voices defiance against the authority of the defense minister and military chief who are supposed to command the Israel Defense Forces, which could be considered incitement to insurrection. He claims the defense minister cannot order the troops, saying: "If we don't go all the way to victory, a hundred thousand soldiers will remain on the fence. We'll call on the citizens of Israel to come to Gaza, and we'll only listen to one leader, (Netanyahu) not the defense minister or the chief of staff. Think very carefully about who you are planning to hand the keys over to afterward."
Moreover, as Israel tries to prove to the United States and bodies like the International Criminal Court that its military does not intentionally target civilians in Gaza, the masked man in the video says: "We want to dismantle whoever remains here, no one will be left alive." He adds: "We want to destroy whoever is here." The Arabic media network Al-Arabiya shared the video on its X account with 16 million followers.
The remarks could undermine Israel's position on the rules of engagement and further inflame tensions already high over the government's judicial overhaul plans, which critics fear could weaken democratic checks and balances.
