Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has denied that he ordered the IDF to sack its most senior soldier in the West Bank, a day after apparently doing so on live television.
During an interview with Channel 14 on Sunday, Katz seemed to announce that Major General Avi Bluth, head of the IDF’s Central Command, would be replaced and backed Major General Dado Bar Kalifa, who currently leads the army’s Personnel Directorate, to fill the role.
The row emerged over the renewal of an administrative restraining order against Tal Yinon Dardik, a West Bank settler accused of involvement in an attack on the Palestinian village of Khirbet Humsa.
Dardik, who lives in an “outpost" – a type of settlement considered illegal under Israeli law – is alleged to have been among a group of settlers who stripped a Palestinian resident naked, clamped his genitals in zip ties and paraded him around the village, allegations which he denies.
In the wake of the incident in March, he was issued with a restraining order which prevented him from entering his home, which sits in the part of the West Bank labelled Area B under the Oslo Accords, meaning it is under Palestinian civil authority but joint Israeli-Palestinian security control.
He was subsequently detained by the IDF after breaching the order and has been on hunger strike for several weeks, while his case has sparked protests among settler groups. In an unusual step last month, Katz personally visited him in his cell.
Then, last week, the restraining order was repealed and Katz ordered Bluth not to submit an application to renew, an order which Bluth allegedly ignored.
Katz told Channel 14 that the Central Command had launched an appeal to the decision “contrary to my policy”.
"They did it against my position. It was the wrong step,” he added.
"[The IDF’s West Bank commander] must take my policy into account, and I will insist on this.”
He then added: “In any case, it was intended – there is the general, Dado Bar Kalifa, who was the commander of the 36th Division, from the generation of heroes who take the offensive, and I announced that I decided to carry out the intention and to appoint him as the general in charge of Central Command.
"By the way, the chief of staff recommended him.
"In the north, the south and the center, I want an IDF that strives for decisive victory, an IDF that hurts its enemies, and protects the settlers … Nobody will compel the government to change policy that the prime minister brought to the cabinet and was unanimously approved.”
This declaration prompted significant backlash from both the IDF and opposition politicians, with the military releasing a pointed statement saying it “has no intention of replacing commanders in key positions during this sensitive period” and that the apparent announcement was “not coordinated” with IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir.
"Bluth commands Central Command in a complex reality, with professionalism, courage, and dedication, and is fully trusted,” it added.
And Shai Alon, head of the Beit El settlement council, called Katz’s comments “shameful and disgraceful” and urged Prime Minister Netanyahu to sack him, saying: “Remove this disgrace.”
However, Katz has subsequently insisted that he did not say that Bluth would be replaced over the Dardik case, saying that he had simply confirmed his intention to “advance [Bar Kalifa’s] appointment in accordance with procedures” after interviewing him several months prior to the Channel 14 appearance.
He also claimed that reports to the contrary were “a complete lie” and “part of a political campaign directed against the government”.
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