Yoav Gallant

Yoav Gallant (Hebrew: יוֹאָב גָּלַנְט‎; born 8 November 1958) is an Israeli politician and former military officer who served as minister of defense between 2022 and 2024. Gallant was an officer in the Southern Command of the Israel Defense Forces, serving in the Israeli Navy. In January 2015, he entered politics, joining the new Kulanu party. After being elected to the Knesset he was appointed minister of construction. At the end of 2018 he joined Likud, shortly after which he became minister of Aliyah and Integration. In 2020 he was appointed minister of education, and the following year became minister of defense. On 5 November 2024, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had dismissed Gallant, effective 7 November, and sought to have Israel Katz replace him. Gallant subsequently resigned from the Knesset on 5 January 2025. On 21 November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Gallant, along with Netanyahu and three Hamas leaders, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the Gaza war.