Benjamin Gantz
Encyclopedia
Rav Aluf Binyamin "Benny" Gantz ' onMouseout='HidePop("77995")' href="/topics/Kfar_Ahim">Kfar Ahim
, Israel
) is the current Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces
.
, Israel
in 1959, Gantz was drafted into the IDF in 1977. He volunteered as a paratrooper in the Paratroopers Brigade, and in 1979 became an officer after completing officer's training school. During his career Gantz has served in a number of different roles, including: Commander of the Shaldag Unit
in the Israeli Air Force
, Commander of the Paratrooper Brigade, Commander of the Reserves Division in the Northern Command, Commander of the Lebanon Liaison Unit, Commander of the Judea and Samaria Division in 2000, before becoming the Commander of the Israeli Northern Command
in 2001, and as Israel's military attaché
in the United States
from 2005 until 2009 before becoming the Deputy Chief of the General Staff.
Gantz has received a number of degrees during his military service. He is a graduate of the IDF Command and Headquarters College and the National Security College. He holds a Bachelor's Degree
in History from Tel Aviv University
, a Master's Degree
in Political Science from the University of Haifa
, and an additional Master's Degree in National Resources Management from the National Defense University
in the United States.
Yoav Galant
, Defense Minister Ehud Barak
announced on 5 February 2011 that he will be recommending to the government
that Gantz be appointed the 20th Chief of the General Staff
(after the pending approval by the Turkel Advisory Committee on Senior Appointments and a government vote).
On 13 February 2011, after a stormy government meeting, the Israeli government unanimously approved Gantz to be the next IDF chief of staff. According to the Jerusalem Post, Prime Minister
Binyamin Netanyahu stated in the weekly Cabinet meeting in Jerusalem that Gantz was an "excellent officer and experienced commander and had rich operational and logistical experience, with all the attributes needed to be a successful army commander."
On February 14, 2011 Gantz assumed command as the Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces.
In his first year as Chief of the General Staff, Gantz appointed the IDF's first-ever female major-general, Orna Barbivai
.
In July 2011 Gantz appointed a special committee to address a controversy that had developed concerning mention of the word Elohim
, "God," in the military Yizkor prayer. The committee determined that a disputed passage should read Yizkor 'Am Yisrael, "May the Nation of Israel remember," and not Yizkor Elohim, "May God remember." Gantz upheld the committee's ruling.
from March 2010 charged Gantz with illegally extending the perimeter of his yard to encompass a small plot of land that had been designated public property and subsequently building on it. "The Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Major General Benny Gantz, invaded a public land area adjacent to his home in Rosh Ha'Ayin
, illegally and without a permit and a license constructed a nice and wide deck on public land next to his house's yard, enclosed it with a pretty wooden fence - and broke the law." The report included photos of the alleged violations. Gantz admitted to the facts but claimed that the public land in question was not and could not be accessible for use by the public. Two months after town hall officials notified him of the violation, the deck was disassembled and removed.
In February 2011, following the government's decision to promote Gantz to Chief of the General Staff, Attorney Avi'ad Vissuli of the Forum for the Land of Israel submitted a formal objection to Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein
and to Judge Ya'akov Turkel
, demanding that the appointment be revoked. Vissuli compared the violations attributed to Gantz to the controversial property violations of Major General Yoav Galant
.
in present-day Nablus
. On 1 October 2000, an armed Palestinian
mob attacked the tomb, and Yusuf suffered a gunshot wound to the neck from a Palestinian sniper. Rather than send in Israeli rescue forces, Ehud Barak, who was Prime Minister and Minister of Defense at the time, instructed Chief of the General Staff Shaul Mofaz
to arrange for the Palestinian Authority to evacuate Yusuf to safety. Despite agreeing to the arrangement, Palestinian security forces failed to arrive, and Yusuf bled to death after four hours.
Since the incident, relatives and friends of Corporal Yusuf have demanded that various individuals be held accountable for what they consider to have been a preventable disaster. Early in February 2011, Yusuf's family told reporters they were considering filing a petition with the Supreme Court
to challenge the planned appointment of Gantz to Chief of the General Staff.
The Turkel Committee charged with reviewing Gantz's qualifications vis-a-vis his planned appointment to Chief of the General Staff determined that Gantz "was not the most senior ranking commander at the scene, and there were operational as well as political considerations involved in the incident for which he was not responsible."
Kfar Ahim
Kfar Ahim is a moshav in south-central Israel. Located near Kiryat Malakhi, it falls under the jurisdiction of Be'er Tuvia Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 453....
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
) is the current Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
.
Personal History and Military Service
Born in Kfar AhimKfar Ahim
Kfar Ahim is a moshav in south-central Israel. Located near Kiryat Malakhi, it falls under the jurisdiction of Be'er Tuvia Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 453....
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in 1959, Gantz was drafted into the IDF in 1977. He volunteered as a paratrooper in the Paratroopers Brigade, and in 1979 became an officer after completing officer's training school. During his career Gantz has served in a number of different roles, including: Commander of the Shaldag Unit
Shaldag Unit
Shaldag , also known as Special Air-Ground Designating Team and Unit 5101, is an elite Israeli Air Force commando unit.- History :...
in the Israeli Air Force
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
, Commander of the Paratrooper Brigade, Commander of the Reserves Division in the Northern Command, Commander of the Lebanon Liaison Unit, Commander of the Judea and Samaria Division in 2000, before becoming the Commander of the Israeli Northern Command
Israeli Northern Command
The Israeli Northern Command is the Israel Defense Forces regional command responsible for the northern front with Syria and Lebanon.-History:...
in 2001, and as Israel's military attaché
Military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from 2005 until 2009 before becoming the Deputy Chief of the General Staff.
Gantz has received a number of degrees during his military service. He is a graduate of the IDF Command and Headquarters College and the National Security College. He holds a Bachelor's Degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in History from Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
, a Master's Degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Political Science from the University of Haifa
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
, and an additional Master's Degree in National Resources Management from the National Defense University
National Defense University
The National Defense University is an institution of higher education funded by the United States Department of Defense, intended to facilitate high-level training, education, and the development of national security strategy. It is chartered by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, with Navy Vice Admiral...
in the United States.
Chief of Staff
Following the canceled appointment of previous nominee AlufAluf
Aluf is the term used for General and Admiral in the Israel Defense Forces . In addition to the Aluf rank itself, there are four other ranks which are derivatives of the word...
Yoav Galant
Yoav Galant
Aluf Yoav Galant is a general in the Israel Defense Forces and a former commander of the Southern Command.Galant was initially chosen in to succeed Gabi Ashkenazi as the next Chief of General Staff in 2011 by Defense Minister Ehud Barak and approved by the Israeli government However, his...
, Defense Minister Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak is an Israeli politician who served as Prime Minister from 1999 until 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until January 2011 and holds the posts of Minister of Defense and Deputy Prime Minister in Binyamin Netanyahu's government....
announced on 5 February 2011 that he will be recommending to the government
Cabinet of Israel
The Cabinet of Israel is a formal body composed of government officials called ministers, chosen and led by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister must appoint members based on the distribution of votes to political parties during legislative elections, and its composition must be approved by a...
that Gantz be appointed the 20th Chief of the General Staff
Ramatkal
The Chief of the General Staff, also known as the Commander-in-Chief of the Israel Defense Forces is the supreme commander and Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces. At any given time, the Chief of Staff is the only active officer holding the IDF's highest rank, Rav Aluf , which is usually...
(after the pending approval by the Turkel Advisory Committee on Senior Appointments and a government vote).
On 13 February 2011, after a stormy government meeting, the Israeli government unanimously approved Gantz to be the next IDF chief of staff. According to the Jerusalem Post, Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Israel
The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and the most powerful political figure in Israel . The prime minister is the country's chief executive. The official residence of the prime minister, Beit Rosh Hamemshala is in Jerusalem...
Binyamin Netanyahu stated in the weekly Cabinet meeting in Jerusalem that Gantz was an "excellent officer and experienced commander and had rich operational and logistical experience, with all the attributes needed to be a successful army commander."
On February 14, 2011 Gantz assumed command as the Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces.
In his first year as Chief of the General Staff, Gantz appointed the IDF's first-ever female major-general, Orna Barbivai
Orna Barbivai
Aluf Orna Barbivai is a general in the Israel Defense Forces and the current head of its Manpower Directorate. She was the first woman to be made Aluf, the IDF's second highest rank.-Personal History and Military Service:...
.
In July 2011 Gantz appointed a special committee to address a controversy that had developed concerning mention of the word Elohim
Elohim
Elohim is a grammatically singular or plural noun for "god" or "gods" in both modern and ancient Hebrew language. When used with singular verbs and adjectives elohim is usually singular, "god" or especially, the God. When used with plural verbs and adjectives elohim is usually plural, "gods" or...
, "God," in the military Yizkor prayer. The committee determined that a disputed passage should read Yizkor 'Am Yisrael, "May the Nation of Israel remember," and not Yizkor Elohim, "May God remember." Gantz upheld the committee's ruling.
Land grab allegations
A report in the Israeli daily Yisrael HayomIsrael HaYom
Israel HaYom is an Israeli national Hebrew-language free daily newspaper first published on July 30, 2007 and currently published in Tabloid format. The name is a variation of the popular USA Today, though there is no relation between the two publications...
from March 2010 charged Gantz with illegally extending the perimeter of his yard to encompass a small plot of land that had been designated public property and subsequently building on it. "The Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Major General Benny Gantz, invaded a public land area adjacent to his home in Rosh Ha'Ayin
Rosh HaAyin
Rosh HaAyin is a city in the Center District of Israel. To the west of Rosh HaAyin is the fortress of Antipatris and the source of the Yarkon River. To the southeast is the fortress of Migdal Afek...
, illegally and without a permit and a license constructed a nice and wide deck on public land next to his house's yard, enclosed it with a pretty wooden fence - and broke the law." The report included photos of the alleged violations. Gantz admitted to the facts but claimed that the public land in question was not and could not be accessible for use by the public. Two months after town hall officials notified him of the violation, the deck was disassembled and removed.
In February 2011, following the government's decision to promote Gantz to Chief of the General Staff, Attorney Avi'ad Vissuli of the Forum for the Land of Israel submitted a formal objection to Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein
Yehuda Weinstein
Yehuda Weinstein is an Israeli lawyer and the Attorney General of Israel, having replaced the previous attorney general, Menachem Mazuz, on 1 February 2010.-Biography:...
and to Judge Ya'akov Turkel
Jacob Turkel
Jacob Turkel is an Israeli judge, and former Supreme Court of Israel Justice.His family immigrated to Israel in 1933 from Vienna, Austria. Turkel served as a judge for 38 years, a decade of that time on the Israeli Supreme Court...
, demanding that the appointment be revoked. Vissuli compared the violations attributed to Gantz to the controversial property violations of Major General Yoav Galant
Yoav Galant
Aluf Yoav Galant is a general in the Israel Defense Forces and a former commander of the Southern Command.Galant was initially chosen in to succeed Gabi Ashkenazi as the next Chief of General Staff in 2011 by Defense Minister Ehud Barak and approved by the Israeli government However, his...
.
Role in the death of Corporal Madhat Yusuf
The Second Intifada erupted while Gantz served as Commander of the Judea-Samaria Division. Corporal Madhat Yusuf, a nineteen-year-old Border Guard policeman, was stationed at the time at Joseph's TombJoseph's Tomb
Joseph's Tomb is a funerary monument located at the eastern entrance to the valley that separates Mounts Gerizim and Ebal, 325 yards northwest of Jacob's Well, on the outskirts of the West Bank city of Nablus, near Tell Balāṭa, the site of biblical Shechem...
in present-day Nablus
Nablus
Nablus is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 126,132. Located in a strategic position between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a Palestinian commercial and cultural center.Founded by the...
. On 1 October 2000, an armed Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
mob attacked the tomb, and Yusuf suffered a gunshot wound to the neck from a Palestinian sniper. Rather than send in Israeli rescue forces, Ehud Barak, who was Prime Minister and Minister of Defense at the time, instructed Chief of the General Staff Shaul Mofaz
Shaul Mofaz
Lt. General Shaul Mofaz is an Israeli politician who serves as the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs And Defense Committee at the Knesset...
to arrange for the Palestinian Authority to evacuate Yusuf to safety. Despite agreeing to the arrangement, Palestinian security forces failed to arrive, and Yusuf bled to death after four hours.
Since the incident, relatives and friends of Corporal Yusuf have demanded that various individuals be held accountable for what they consider to have been a preventable disaster. Early in February 2011, Yusuf's family told reporters they were considering filing a petition with the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Israel
The Supreme Court is at the head of the court system and highest judicial instance in Israel. The Supreme Court sits in Jerusalem.The area of its jurisdiction is all of Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. A ruling of the Supreme Court is binding upon every court, other than the Supreme...
to challenge the planned appointment of Gantz to Chief of the General Staff.
The Turkel Committee charged with reviewing Gantz's qualifications vis-a-vis his planned appointment to Chief of the General Staff determined that Gantz "was not the most senior ranking commander at the scene, and there were operational as well as political considerations involved in the incident for which he was not responsible."