IDF chief of staff resigns over Oct. 7 failures amid political pressure
Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi will depart his role on March 6

PMO
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Herzi Halevi in Jerusalem on July 20, 2024.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi announced his resignation, effective March 6, citing his “responsibility for the failure of the IDF on October 7” in a letter tendered to Defense Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday.
Halevi’s resignation came at a time of increased political pressure from the governing coalition for him to leave his position.
“Recognizing my responsibility for the failure of the IDF on Oct. 7, and at a point in time in which the IDF recorded significant achievements and rehabilitated the deterrence and strength of the State of Israel, I ask to finish my position on March 6, 2025,” Halevi wrote. “I made this decision long ago. Now, when the IDF has the upper hand in all of the arenas of war and an additional agreement to free hostages is underway, the time is ripe.”
Halevi said that in the coming weeks, he will complete investigations into the IDF’s response to the Oct. 7 attack and will continue to work on military preparedness for the challenges ahead.
He concluded the letter by saying he will “always be a soldier of the State of Israel.”
Katz thanked Halevi “for his contributions to the IDF throughout all of his years of service as a fighter and commander and for his part in the great achievements of the IDF in the difficult war that was forced on us.”
Halevi will be leaving his position as the first phase of the cease-fire with Hamas is slated to finish.
IDF Southern Command head Maj.-Gen. Yaron Finkelman resigned on Tuesday as well, minutes after Halevi, saying, “According to my conscience and the values that guide me, I decided to finish my role as Southern Command commander and my services in the IDF.”
“On Oct. 7, I failed in defending the western Negev and its beloved and courageous residents,” Finkelman wrote. “This failure will be burned in me for the rest of my life … I acted since then to lead the war against Hamas and the terrorist organizations in Gaza.”
Halevi assumed the role of IDF chief of staff in January 2023, after serving as the head of the Southern Command and head of IDF intelligence. During the Second Intifada, he commanded the IDF’s sayeret matkal, or special forces, unit.
He presided over the military on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing over 1,000, wounding more than 3,000 and taking 251 hostages. Hamas terrorists overtook an IDF base and a crossing from Gaza into Israel, in addition to attacking seven towns and the Nova music festival. The IDF took hours to mount a response to the attacks.
Halevi’s resignation came as members of the governing coalition called for his ouster.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who voted against the cease-fire and hostage-release deal, has repeatedly spoken out against Halevi in recent days.
“Hamas brought in 15 months of humanitarian aid that maintained the civilian population’s dependence” on Hamas, Smotrich said in remarks to reporters in the Knesset on Monday. Halevi “bears personal responsibility for this matter.”
Smotrich also argued that Halevi and other IDF generals oppose “anything that sounds like occupation … There is no way to defeat Hamas and bring security to the citizens of Israel without doing this.”
Former National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who quit the coalition over the hostage deal, said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered to fire Halevi and give Ben-Gvir credit. Netanyahu’s office called his remarks “an utter lie.”
Defense Ministry Director General Eyal Zamir, who was shortlisted for the role previously, is rumored as a potential successor to Halevi.