US says ousted Israeli defense minister was ‘trusted partner,’ but ready to work with Katz

The Biden administration said Tuesday that ousted Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant was a trusted partner but voiced readiness to work with his replacement.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to fire Gallant surprised many after the embattled Israeli premier said he had no trust in him. Netanyahu replaced Gallant with Israel Katz, the sitting foreign minister who barred the UN secretary-general from visiting the country.

“America’s commitment to Israel’s security remains ironclad, and the US Department of Defense will continue to work closely with Israel’s next defense minister,” Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said.

Katz’s replacement will be Gideon Saar and will add another controversial figure to Netanyahu’s government that includes several extremists. Saar was in the running to replace Gallant months ago, but fierce US opposition and other factors prevented that.

US officials said the move now meant that Netanyahu had more control over the wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

Asked if this was a positive or negative development, one official, speaking not for attribution, said it may be good for Lebanon but bad for Gaza.

Washington has failed to mediate an end to the monthslong Israeli bombardment of Gaza that has seen over 40,000 Palestinians killed, a majority of them believed to be women, children and innocent civilians. Across the northern Israeli border, an all-out war with Hezbollah has also broken out. Israel said its main goal was to allow some 60,000 residents to return to their homes in the north. However, Israeli goals have expanded after their fourth invasion of Lebanon.

Senior Biden administration officials, including Amos Hochstein, have been trying to broker a deal to end the cross-border fighting. Hochstein and the White House’s Middle East czar, Brett McGurk, were in Israel last week as part of US efforts to end the wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

Hochstein has seen more progress on the Lebanon file than McGurk has on Gaza. Hochstein is expected to return to Beirut in the next several days to follow up on ceasefire talks. It is unclear if he will travel to Tel Aviv after Beirut.