Who will succeed IDF Chief Halevi to rebuild Israel’s army after the Oct 7 failure?

With the IDF scoring impressive achievements across several fronts over the last months, it is easy to forget that just over a year ago, Israel’s vaunted fighting forces were humiliated and failed to defend the country’s borders against Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.

This week, both IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi and Southern Command chief Maj.-Gen. Yaron Finkelman announced their resignations citing this failure. Their departures are likely to trigger a wave of additional resignations among the top brass of Israel’s security forces, including those within the domestic intelligence service, Shin Bet.

Therefore, the question of who will be nominated to replace Halevi as the IDF’s next chief of staff will receive special significance, as he will have the opportunity to fill numerous top spots and mold the army in his image for the coming decade.

However, the next leader will be expected to drive the military’s renewal, not just in terms of manpower and weapons systems, but especially regarding the army’s strategic outlook, and to move away from the much-maligned "concepts" that led to the stunning failures of Oct. 7.

Defense Minister Israel Katz, who himself recently replaced Yoav Gallant, who led the security system during Oct. 7, announced he would soon begin interviewing the candidates for the position of chief of staff.

“It is of the utmost importance to choose the most suitable candidate to lead the IDF in this challenging period, and I intend to have an orderly and quick procedure for selecting the candidate for the position of the next Chief of Staff," Katz said.

“The IDF is the people’s army and it is entrusted with the ultimate responsibility for preserving the lives of soldiers and protecting the State of Israel, and I will choose the best candidate to fulfill the mission,” he vowed.

Katz has named three candidates for the position: Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Eyal Zamir, the current Director-General of the Defense Ministry; Maj.-Gen. Amir Baram, currently Halevi’s deputy; and Maj.-Gen. Tamir Yadai, who recently finished a stint as Ground Forces commander and is on vacation ahead of a planned retirement.

According to most experts and media reports, Zamir is the leading candidate.

Zamir is considered front runner to succeed Halevi due to his experience in the army as well as in the broader security system.

He reportedly has the trust of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and is seen as someone with the potential to renew the army, as he didn’t have a direct part in the failures of Oct. 7.

He had also demanded to increase the IDF’s ground troops long before the current war, which is widely seen as one of the main lessons the military will learn from the current multi-front fighting. When taking over as deputy chief of staff in 2021, Zamir warned: “In the face of a multi-arena campaign, the IDF needs a critical mass of both quality and quantity.”

Media reports suggest he is well-connected among the political echelon and the army’s brass, and in his position as Director-General of the Defense Ministry, has gathered experience in building up the military from the outside, while also establishing good contacts with the U.S. military.

Zamir might be seen as somewhat of an outsider as chief of staff, a position that has been dominated by former infantry commanders, most often paratroopers and special forces commanders.

He enlisted in the Armored Corps, rising through the ranks to fill numerous positions as combat commander. After commanding the 36th Armored Division, he was nominated as the prime minister’s military secretary in 2015.

He was already a candidate to become chief of staff in 2018 and 2022, losing out to Aviv Kochavi and Herzi Halevi, despite support from Netanyahu.

Current deputy chief of staff Maj.-Gen. Baram has had a more “traditional” career for a top IDF general. He rose through the ranks of the Paratrooper Brigade together with his current commander, Lt.-Gen. Halevi.

Baram led an anti-tank squad, the Paratrooper reconnaissance unit, and the special Maglan Unit before becoming commander of the Paratrooper Brigade, the 98th Division and finally, the IDF’s Northern Command.

Despite being in a commanding position during Oct. 7, he is not seen as one of those responsible for the failures, as his recent positions on the northern border and as deputy chief of staff were not directly connected to the army’s performance on the Gaza front.

According to Walla News, Baram had several differences of opinion with Halevi in recent years, which could also give him another important boost in the race.

The last, somewhat surprising candidate is Maj.-Gen. Yadai, who just recently began the retirement process but announced upon leaving his post, “My phone is available – if called, I will come.”

While also having begun his career as an infantry soldier, Yadai first joined the Golani Brigade, seen as the “brigade of the people” as opposed to the “elitist” Paratroopers.

Over the years, he commanded the special Egoz Unit and led the Golani Brigade during the Second Lebanon War, earning rave reviews as a field commander. He later served as head of the Home Front Command, the Central Command, and the Ground Forces Command.

At the beginning of the current war, Yadai pushed for his ground forces to enter Gaza and expressed confidence in the reserve troops, which was vindicated by their performance in the fighting.

As Yadai hasn’t yet served as deputy chief of staff, contrary to Zamir and Baram, media reports suggested he could be nominated as the next deputy if he doesn’t win the top spot.