In first, IDF chief Eyal Zamir punishes commanders, generals for October 7 failures

Notably, nearly all of the top defense officials who were in office on October 7 resigned early, from Halevi himself to former IDF intelligence chief Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Aharon Haliva, ex-IDF Southern Command chief Yaron Finkelman, former 8200 Unit chief Yossi Sariel, ex-intelligence analysis director Brig.-Gen. Amit Saar, and former Gaza Division chief Avi Rosenfeld.

Outset Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) director Ronen Bar, as well as many other IDF and Shin Bet officials, can also be included in this list.

Nor has any other person in the political echelon resigned or hinted at a readiness to do so, with former defense minister Yoav Gallant (Likud) pushed out of office by Netanyahu in November 2024 after falling out with the prime minister over other issues.

The most significant unanswered question at some point had been the fate of Maj.-Gen. Shlomi Binder, who had been the number two officer in the Operations Command on October 7. In August 2024, Halevi was promoting him to be the next IDF intelligence chief over objections from many due to Binder’s role on October 7.

Halevi had cleared Binder for promotion back then, saying he was set up to fail by the larger IDF intelligence let-down and could not have acted any differently.

Given that leaning, Zamir issued only a reprimand in Binder’s file, meaning he can remain as intelligence chief, likely until August 2027. However, it also seems clear that he will then need to retire with no possibility of future promotion.

Had Binder not been reprimanded over October 7, he would have been seen as a potential future IDF chief. Still, leaving him in place is noteworthy not only because this indicates leniency toward him, but also because it empowers Binder – a key figure involved in the October 7 failure – to be the reshaper and rebuilder of the IDF’s intelligence structure.

Despite concerns about this issue, IDF sources have noted that heads rolled within IDF intelligence units after Binder entered the officer ranks. They also said that he has massively reshuffled the apparatus to be better prepared to handle surprise attacks and to be more ready to be skeptical about any single way to view a given adversary.

Three former high command members who are no longer in the IDF – Haliva, Finkelman (both of whom resigned early), and former Operations Directorate chief Oded Basiuk (who retired this past July after an extended service of over four years at his post) were all “expelled” from IDF reserve duty.

This means there is little impact on their primary service, as all three left the IDF voluntarily before being “punished.”

These punishments could also make it harder for them to serve in future public service positions, such as the Defense Ministry, which is ironic for Basiuk, since Zamir asked him to stay on in the IDF for several months longer than he wanted.

Sariel and Rosenfeld, who had the ranks of brigadier-general, were also “expelled,” as were other officers who had already left the IDF.

It is also possible that these punishments could make it harder for them to serve in future public service positions, such as the Defense Ministry, which is ironic for Basiuk, since Zamir asked him to stay on in the IDF for several months longer than he wanted.

Sariel and Rosenfeld, who had the ranks of brigadier-general, were also "expelled" as were other officers who had already left the IDF.

Current serving Israel Air Force commander Tomer Bar and Israel Navy chief David Saar Salama both received reprimands in their file, but were not directed to resign. In fact, Zamir has repeatedly asked Bar to extend his service in the air force, given that his initial three-year term concluded this past Spring.

Bar has extended his service until April 2026 but vowed to retire then, despite Zamir asking him to consider serving longer. The air force chief’s conduct during the war against Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria, Iran, and Yemen's Houthis after October 7 has universally been viewed as phenomenal, with him likely emerging from the war as the most celebrated officer.

Salama has not received as much public credit as Bar has post-October 7, but has been viewed positively for his efforts to reorient the navy’s operations, enabling it to play a much greater role in sea-to-land warfare than previously envisioned.

Former IDF Southern Command and Depth Corps chief Eliezer Toledano, who had also been a member of the high command and retired from the IDF in March of this year, received no formal disciplinary action.

Further, there was no mention of Zamir rendering any judgment regarding Halevi, who was and is Toledano’s equal in rank.

Two major open questions after Zamir’s announcements related to Bar’s and Salama’s successors remain.

Given that Bar refused to extend his service beyond April 2026, Zamir has, for some time, tried to get Bar’s deputy, Brig.-Gen. Omer Tischler, to succeed Bar, so that the two men can spend months conducting the most effective possible transition.

Defense Minister Israel Katz has blocked the promotion, however, either to encourage Zamir to make decisions about the consequences of October 7 for commanders, including Tischler, who has not been fired and should now be cleared to replace Bar.

Alternatively, Katz may also have been holding up Tischler’s promotion to force Zamir into compromises on other appointments, such as replacing IDF Maj.-Gen. Hidai Zilberman, who has left his post as defense attaché in Washington.

Zilberman has already moved on to become the head of the IDF Planning Directorate, starting a transition process with IDF Maj.-Gen. Eyal Harel, with Zilberman due to take sole control of the position on December 21.

Often, Netanyahu and other defense ministers like to promote their military secretaries to sensitive positions afterward, feeling they can rely on them more in rough political situations.

In some ways, Katz’s desired move here is less controversial than his move to bring in a police official like Halevi. Still, it appears that Zamir himself either cares more about who serves in the US defense attaché position than he cared about the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), or he has had enough with Katz dictating top IDF posts.

Subsequent to Zamir’s announcements, the Post learned that expectations are that Katz will now clear Tischler to replace Bar in April 2026.

In addition to the above decisions, Zamir has expelled the Military Intelligence Directorate operations chief Brig.-Gen. “G,” IDF Southern Command intelligence chief Col. “A,” and IDF Northern Brigade commander for the Gaza Division, Col. Haim Cohen, all of whom had already resigned.

Zamir has also ordered IDF Gaza Division intelligence chief “A,” who notoriously ignored the warnings of junior intelligence officer “V” about the “Walls of Jericho” Hamas operation, to end his service immediately.

However, this was not officially labeled as an expulsion, given that “A” was near the end of his service.