Defense Minister Benny Gantz has picked Maj. Gen. Herzl (Herzi) Halevi to serve as the 23rd commander of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). If approved by the government, Halevi, 54, would become the first religious IDF chief in Israeli history, albeit without the distinctive head covering, the kippa, worn by many observant Jews. In fact, he is a member of a growing sector loosely described as “invisible” kippa wearers who observe religious strictures but without the dress code.
Halevi has solid religious Zionist credentials being a scion of the rabbinical dynasty founded by Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kuk, considered the spiritual leader of historic religious Zionism. But Halevi is far removed from modern-day religious Zionism and the evolution of the historic Religious Zionism party, currently led by ultra-right Knesset member Bezalel Smotrich. Its sister party, Jewish Power (the two parties will run on one ticket in the upcoming November election), is led by Knesset member Itamar Ben-Gvir, a disciple of racist American-Israeli Rabbi Meir Kahane.
Halevi was a paratrooper and commando unit leader, dubbed in a 2013 New York Times profile a “philosopher-general” for his undergraduate degree in philosophy and penchant for quoting Maimonides and Socrates. He is known as a sober individual and original thinker who holds pragmatic views. Most importantly, he is one of a handful of military officers who have dared put forth positions contradicting those of the political echelon that appoints them and refused to blindly obey political whims.
As head of the Southern Command, and then as deputy chief-of-staff, Halevi was a strong proponent of expanding Israel’s economic benefits for the Gaza Strip in a bid to dissuade its Palestinian residents and Hamas rulers from terrorist activity. His views were eventually accepted by the government that took office in June 2021, whose policies have resulted in relative calm along Israel’s southern border (except for the recent skirmish with Gaza’s Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which Hamas sat out).
AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.
