Israel
Who is Tzachi Braverman, the favourite to be Israel’s next ambassador to the UK?
Outgoing ambassador Tzipi Hotovely hinted that Braverman might be posted to London during a recent exclusive JC interview
August 7, 2025 14:48
Outgoing ambassador Tzipi Hotovely hinted that Braverman might be posted to London during a recent exclusive JC interview
August 7, 2025 14:48With the end of Tzipi Hotovely’s term as Israel’s Ambassador to the UK quickly approaching, there is still no confirmation on who will replace her.
The JC profiled the most likely candidates for the role back in February, but one in particular appears to have emerged as the frontrunner.
In an exclusive interview with the JC, published earlier this week, the outgoing ambassador “hinted” that her successor “could” be Prime Minister Netanyahu’s current Chief of Staff, Tzachi Braverman. “It’s not been confirmed officially, but this is the name I’m familiar with,” Hotovely said.
Braverman was appointed chief of staff in April 2022 while Netanyahu was leading the opposition and retained the post following Likud’s victory in the legislative elections that December.
Born in Tel Aviv on March 7, 1959, he served in the IDF as a liaison training officer in the 460th Bnei Or Brigade – the training brigade to the 80th Division of the Southern Command.
Braverman subsequently earned a law degree from Bar-Ilan University and worked as the spokesperson for the Ness Ziona municipality. He later became the CEO of Ness Ziona’s educational and cultural institutions.
In 2013, he headed the joint election headquarters of the Likud-Yisrael Beitenu slate in the elections for the 19th Knesset.
The 65-year-old has also previously served as Cabinet Secretariat, responsible for setting the agenda for the government meetings, ministerial committees and acting as a government spokesperson, between 2016 and 2021.
His political career has not been without controversy, though.
In June 2017, it was alleged that he spoke to members of the Judicial Selection Committee, while his wife was being considered for a district court judgeship. This led to the hearing on his wife’s appointment being cancelled and an investigation into Braverman by the Civil Service Commission.
Then, the day of the 2021 legislative elections, he posted a photo on social media showing he was voting for Likud, seemingly in violation of the Takshir Directive, which prevents civil servants from publicly declaring their politics. This led to a second investigation by the commission.
More recently, Braverman, a close ally of Netanyahu, accompanied the prime minister for his trip to the United States and his meeting with president Donald Trump.
And, according to Israeli newspaper The Marker, both Braverman and his wife Nava are considered to be close to both the prime minister and his wife Sara.
In terms of other rivals for the post, Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel, who holds the same position Ambassador Hotovely did before being appointed Ambassador to the UK, has previously been rumoured to be in contention for the posting.
She is a fluent English speaker, having studied in the US for a year and lived in Australia for six, and is generally regarded as being on the liberal side of Likud due to her environmental and animal rights activism and support for decriminalising cannabis, as well as having previously served as head of the Knesset’s LGBT+ caucus.
Mayor of Ramat Gan, Carmel Shama-Hacohen, is also believed to be a candidate. He has served as mayor since 2018, having previously acted as a Likud MK between 2009 and 2013, as well as a brief stint in 2014. Hacohen was also previously Israel’s envoy to the OECD, UNESCO and the Council of Europe.
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