Outgoing IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi concludes his term today after 516 days of war with no end in sight. He is replaced by Eyal Zamir, promoted to the rank of lieutenant general in a ceremony held at the Kirya military base.
Much hope rests on Zamir, who will assume office in record time, becoming the first to enter the chief of staff's office amid an active war, and inheriting the Israel Defense Forces in arguably the worst state in its history. His main tasks will be to rehabilitate the Israeli military and, crucially, restore the public's trust in it as well as the confidence of its service members in their commanders.
Zamir will receive no grace period, and he knows it. He appears to be the right person for the job, and the only contender with comprehensive experience in all required fields: diplomatic and even political acumen from his time as the military secretary to the prime minister, economic expertise from his tenure as director-general of the Defense Ministry and as deputy chief of staff, and a clear-eyed security perspective developed over decades of military service.
Despite having little time to prepare, Zamir is stepping into the role following a thorough assessment of the IDF. In recent weeks, he visited all operational sectors, including the five IDF outposts beyond the Lebanese border, as well as Gaza and Jenin. He is expected to complete a visit to Syria in the future. During these visits, he met directly with senior commanders, often informally on park benches or during jeep rides, to hear their candid views.
A critical moment
Zamir is likely considering whether to reopen some of the internal investigations into the war, amid sharp criticism from within the military over their reliability and execution. He is expected to make decisive and swift rulings on the future of certain commanders involved in the failures, while taking more time to assess others.
Two days ago, Operations Directorate head Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk preemptively resigned, and additional resignations or dismissals are anticipated in the coming days. For instance, former Southern Command head Maj. Gen. Eliezer Toledano, now head of the Strategy Directorate, is expected to leave the military. Other commanders, such as Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, are expected to receive full support from Zamir, contrary to recent reports and rumors.
Operationally, Zamir assumes command in the middle of an ongoing war, with multiple active fronts. Barring an unexpected escalation, such as uncontrolled violence in Judea and Samaria, his primary focus will be on two arenas: Gaza and Iran. The timing is critical regarding the Iranian threat. Zamir and Israel's political-security leadership are convinced that Iran must be prevented from becoming a nuclear state, requiring preparation on offensive, defensive, and diplomatic fronts.
Defeating Hamas
Regarding the Gaza Strip, the situation is particularly complex. Shortly after the war began, Zamir placed in his office a photograph of Shiri Bibas clutching her two sons, Ariel and Kfir, in terror during their kidnapping, a reminder of Israel's moral obligation to secure the return of all hostages.
Zamir knows the southern arena well from his time as head of the Southern Command, where he prepared substantial operational plans for defeating Hamas if necessary. Over the years, these plans were shelved by his successors and replaced with others, as seen in Operation Guardian of the Walls, which has since been widely recognized as a failure.
After the "Black Saturday" massacre at the start of the war, when Israel had full legitimacy to act aggressively in Gaza, the General Staff under Halevi chose a different path, favoring sequential over simultaneous operations, for reasons that, while explainable, have drawn criticism.
Throughout the war, Zamir, along with others such as Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, expressed reservations about the IDF's conduct. If the military is called upon to resume fighting under his command, we can expect to see far more aggressive and extensive tactics, markedly different from those executed over the past 15 months.
Zamir will prepare the IDF to support any decision made by the political echelon, but his core belief is that ultimately, Hamas must be defeated, even if it means Israeli society will once again have to bear heavy costs.
He will also need to devote significant attention to the career military, which is experiencing one of its worst crises since Israel's founding. This will include substantial investment to counter the mass departure of officers. Other areas of focus will include the IDF's organizational culture, norms, and values, which have eroded during the prolonged months of war.
In short, Zamir is known as a man of integrity with a strong backbone. He enters the role with full backing from the Israeli political leadership, but he owes them nothing. His test will be standing firm, if necessary, to protect the IDF's interests against any who might undermine them. Most importantly, he will be tasked with restoring public confidence in the IDF and, above all, rebuilding the sense of security for every Israeli citizen.
