JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired defence minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday (Nov 5), saying he had no trust in him over the management of Israel's ongoing military operations as the wars in Gaza and Lebanon grind on.

Netanyahu appointed Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a close ally, to succeed Gallant, while Gideon Saar becomes the new foreign minister, Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

Gallant and Netanyahu, both in the right-wing Likud party, have clashed for months over the objectives of Israel's 13-month-old war in Gaza against the militant group Hamas, and many had expected the prime minister to sack him sooner or later.

But the timing was a surprise, and came as the United States was consumed by its presidential election. Gallant, who rose to the rank of general during a 35-year military career, had been a key interlocutor for Washington over the last year of conflict.

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