Who will be the newsmakers of the New Israeli government?
Nearly two months after Israel’s elections, the government led by Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in late on Thursday. His supporting cast of Cabinet ministers includes some personalities who will frequently be in the headlines.
Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu (R) with MK Yoav Galant, now Defence Minister, (L) during a faction meeting at the Knesset, Nov 15, 2021. Photo by Shalev Shalom/TPS
With former leaders moving to the opposition, such as ex-Prime Minister Yair Lapid, or leaving politics, such as his rotational predecessor, Naftali Bennett, here are the key Israeli newsmakers to watch for.
Defence Minister Yoav Galant
Running the Defense Ministry is widely considered the most important job in government. The Defense Minister is responsible for the nation’s security, promotes the research and development of new technologies, oversees long-term planning for the future, and is the point man for the Israeli Defense Force’s relations with militaries around the world.
The 64-year-old Galant is a continuation of the Israeli trend of appointing former military leaders as Defence Minister.
A member of Likud, Galant began his military service in 1977 in the elite Shayetet 13 naval commando unit. Galant climbed the ranks and led Israel’s three-week war against Hamas in 2008 following Gaza rocket fire and the discovery of terror tunnels.
In 2010, Galant was approved to become the Israeli Defense Force’s Chief of Staff. But before his installation in the post, Galant was accused of illegally encroaching his private home and garden on public property. Galant’s appointment was cancelled and the position was given to Benny Gantz, who Galant is succeeding as Defense Minister. Galant was later partially cleared of the accusations.
Galant entered politics in 2015 with the centrist Kulanu party, then later joined Likud. He has served as Minister of Construction, Immigration and Education.
As Minister of Education, Galant opposed the awarding of the prestigious Israel Prize in mathematics to Professor Oded Goldreich over a letter the mathematician had signed in 2019 urging Germany’s parliament not to label the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign against Israel as antisemitic.
Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir
As Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir will be responsible for public security, law enforcement and corrections, putting the police and prison service among the institutions under his authority.
The 46-year-old Ben-Gvir is the son of Iraqi father and Kurdish mother. As a youth, he became active in Kach, a far-right political party founded by American-Israeli Rabbi Meir Kahane. When he turned 18, the Israeli military refused to draft Ben-Gvir because of his radical views.
Both Kach and the breakaway Kahane-Chai party were banned in 1994, but Ben-Gvir remained active in protesting the Oslo Accords. As a lawyer, Ben-Gvir developed a reputation for representing far-right Jewish organisations and individual Jews accused of attacking Arabs.
The Otzma Yehudit party that Ben-Gvir leads is viewed as the ideological successor to the Kahane movement.
Ben-Gvir has advocated for Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount, but has not articulated how he would bring that about. Currently, Jews visiting the holy site stand to be arrested if police see them praying. It’s not clear what instructions he would give police officers on the issue.
Finance Minister and Minister in Defense Betzalel Smotrich
As Finance Minister, Religious Zionism Party leader Betzalel Smotrich will be responsible for implementing the government’s overall economic policy and draft the state budget. He will also have a special ministerial-level role within the Defense Ministry overseeing the civil administration of Judea and Samaria. Till now, civil administration was the Defense Minister’s responsibility.
In two years, Smotrich will swap the Finance portfolio with Aryeh Deri and become Interior Minister. The Interior Minister oversees matters of citizenship, residency, identity cards and visas.
Smotrich grew up in the community of Beit El and studied at Mercaz Rav Kook, the flagship seminary of the religious Zionism movement. A certified lawyer, Smotrich is the co-founder of Regavim, a non-governmental organization that monitors illegal Palestinian construction and land theft in Judea and Samaria.
He has advocated for religious Jewish law to have a larger role in Israeli law and the expansion of Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria. In a September interview, Smotrich compared recognition for Israel’s LGBTQ community to “driving through a red light.” Smotrich has also called Reform Judaism a “fake religion,” and has called for reforming Israel’s Law of Return to restrict the immigration of non-Jews.
Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer
The Minister of Strategic Affairs is tasked with acting against campaigns to boycott Israel in the diplomatic, academic, economic, cultural and legal spheres. The ministry also engages educational institutions, organisations, pro-Israel groups and communities around the world.
Dermer, who was born and raised in Miami, has been regarded by some Israelis as Netanyahu’s political heir after he was appointed Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S., perhaps the most sensitive diplomatic posting.
During his tenure in Washington between 2013-2021, Dermer played key roles in securing a 10-year $38 billion military aid package in 2016 and bringing about the Abraham Accords of 2020 spearheaded by former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and advisor Jared Kushner. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla also credited Dermer for helping Israel obtain millions of doses of COVID vaccines.
Dermer broke into politics in 1995 while studying at Oxford University when he conducted polling and formulated strategy for Natan Sharansky ahead of the former Soviet human rights activist’s successful 1996 Knesset election campaign. Following a second successful election campaign in 2000, Sharansky introduced Dermer to Netanyahu. Since then, the 51-year-old Dermer, has been one of Netanyahu’s closest, most trusted confidantes.
As ambassador when the Obama administration was negotiating the JCPOA nuclear agreement with Iran, Dermer helped arrange Netanyahu’s address to a joint session of Congress in 2015. That made Dermer a lightning rod for many of the nuclear agreement’s Democratic supporters.
Foreign Ministers Eli Cohen and Israel Katz
The foreign minister is nominally responsible for Israel’s relations with other countries and representing the Jewish state in international forums. But in his previous term as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu preferred to be more hands-on directing Israel’s foreign relations, keeping the portfolio for himself most of the time.
Now, as part of a rotation agreement, Eli Cohen will serve as Foreign Minister for one year, then be replaced by Israel Katz who will start off as Energy Minister. Both are members of Likud.
The 50-year-old Cohen is an accountant by training who entered politics with the centrist Kulanu party in 2015. Between 2017-2021, he served as Minister of Economy and then as Minister of Intelligence. He followed Kulanu into Likud when the parties merged in 2020. Cohen also lectures at Tel Aviv University.
Israel Katz is the son of Romanian Holocaust survivors. The 67-year-old entered politics in 1996, and by 2003, he rose to Minister of Agriculture. Since then, Katz has also served as Minister of Transport, Intelligence, and more recently of Finance. Between Feb. 2019-May 2020, Katz served as Netanyahu’s Foreign Minister.
Despite Cohen and Katz having the title of Foreign Minister, it’s widely believed that Netanyahu will send other trusted confidantes, such as former Mossad direct Yossi Cohen on sensitive diplomatic assignments.
