Defense Minister Israel Katz on Monday rejected the claim that he called for IDF Central Command chief Maj.-Gen. Avi Bluth’s dismissal, calling the argument an outright lie that is part of a political campaign directed against the government.<\/p>\n
During a Sunday live interview with Channel 14\u2019s \u201cThe Patriots,\u201d<\/a> Katz said that, “when one of the participants called to ‘dismiss the general [Bluth],’ I responded immediately and clearly: ‘No.’ The exchange was recorded on camera and is fully documented,” he said.<\/p>\n Katz said the appointment process for IDF Manpower Directorate Chief Maj.-Gen. Dado \u00a0Bar Khalifa to Central Command commander had already been underway for months; “therefore, the attempt to suggest that any decision was made as a result of that interview does not stand up to the facts.”<\/p>\n “This is not a genuine controversy but rather a media attempt to divert attention from the real question: What would happen if Yair Golan<\/a>, who has already threatened to dismiss [Shin Bet chief] David Zini, were to become defense minister in a government led by Gadi Eisenkot?”<\/p>\n “In such a scenario, there is concern that figures associated with the old “conceptzia” would once again be appointed, something that could harm the settlement enterprise and Israel’s security,” Katz said. “That did not happen under my watch, and it will not happen.”<\/p>\n During the interview with\u00a0Channel 14, Katz explained that his decision was made due to Bluth\u2019s allegedly unsatisfactory handling of extremist settler violence in the West Bank. He accused Bluth of being overly harsh in efforts to combat Israeli settler violence<\/a> while neglecting the fight against Palestinian terrorism from the West Bank.<\/p>\n