Netanyahu, Israeli army chief clash over Iran ahead of elections

Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has clashed with Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir over a proposed military operation involving Iran, according to Israeli media, ahead of Israel’s parliamentary elections on Tuesday, October 27.

Channel 12 reported on Sunday, October 25, that Zamir sought further discussions before acting on a directive from the political leadership and demanded signed legal authorisation for the operation. The network did not disclose the nature of the proposed military action.

Military officials reportedly feared that the move could trigger a wider confrontation with Iran. Sources also raised concerns that tensions with Tehran could be exploited for electoral gain, an allegation rejected by political figures.

Netanyahu dismissed the report in an interview with Channel 14, calling it “nonsense” and saying “there was no fight” with Zamir.

During the interview, Netanyahu said he had instructed the Mossad intelligence agency and the IDF to overthrow the Iranian regime, warning that Tehran could still pose a nuclear threat despite previous military strikes.

“I have instructed the Mossad and the IDF to overthrow the Iranian regime,” he said.

“We have an opportunity to secure a bright future for the State of Israel,” Netanyahu added.

Comparing Iran to a wounded scorpion, he warned, “We struck them, but like a wounded scorpion, they can deliver one final sting and hurt us.”

“We struck them, and we will strike them again,” he added.

Defence Minister Israel Katz rejected claims of a rift between the political leadership and the military. In a post on X on Monday, October 26, he said Israel had no intention of attacking Iran before the elections.

“We have made it clear that if Iran were to attack Israel, we would retaliate with great force; any information suggesting otherwise is completely false,” Katz wrote.

הפרסומים על פערים בין הדרג המדיני לצה"ל בנושא איראן הם מופרכים ושקריים לחלוטין.

מאז כניסתי לתפקיד שר הביטחון התיאום בין רה"מ וביני לבין צה"ל בנושא איראן הוא מלא – עם הישגים היסטוריים חסרי תקדים לטובת ביטחון מדינת ישראל.

זהו השיקול היחיד – וכך יהיה גם בעתיד.

אני קובע באופן חד…

— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) October 26, 2026

He accused the opposition of trying to undermine confidence in his and Netanyahu’s judgement.

Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, backed Zamir and cautioned against using the military for political purposes.

“Israel’s security isn’t a tool in a political game,” Eisenkot wrote on X, adding that the lives of Israeli citizens and soldiers must not be treated as expendable.

Who is Eyal Zamir?

Zamir served as Netanyahu’s military secretary from 2012 to 2015 and later led Israel’s Southern Command for three years. He left the military in 2021 and worked as a visiting research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy in the United States.

He returned to Israel in 2023 to become director-general of the Defence Ministry before being appointed IDF chief of staff with the backing of Netanyahu and Katz.

Zamir succeeded Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, who announced his resignation in January 2025 following scrutiny of the military’s failures surrounding the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

He had previously been considered twice for the top military post, but the position went to Halevi and his predecessor, Aviv Kohavi.

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