Benny Gantz facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Benny Gantz
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בֵּנִי גַּנְץ
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Gantz in 2024
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| 1st Alternate Prime Minister of Israel | |
| In office 17 May 2020 – 13 June 2021 |
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| President | Reuven Rivlin |
| Prime Minister | Benjamin Netanyahu |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Yair Lapid |
| Ministerial roles | |
| 2020–2022 | Minister of Defense |
| 2021 | Minister of Justice |
| 2021–2022 | Deputy Prime Minister |
| 2023–2024 | Minister without portfolio |
| Faction represented in the Knesset | |
| 2019–2022 | Blue and White |
| 2022– | National Unity |
| Military roles | |
| 2011–2015 | Chief of the General Staff |
| Other roles | |
| 2020 | Speaker of the Knesset |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Benjamin Gantz
9 June 1959 Kfar Ahim, Israel |
| Political party | Israel Resilience Party (2018–present) |
| Spouse | Revital |
| Children | 4 |
| Alma mater | Tel Aviv University University of Haifa National Defense University |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Israel |
| Branch/service |  Israel Defense Forces |
| Years of service | 1977–2015 |
| Rank | Rav Aluf |
| Unit | Paratroopers Brigade |
| Commands |
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| Battles/wars |
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| Awards | Commander of the Legion of Merit (United States) |
Benjamin "Benny" Gantz (Hebrew: בִּנְיָמִין "בֵּנִי" גַּנְץ; born 9 June 1959) is an Israeli politician and a former army general. He has held important government jobs, like being a minister without a specific department (called a "minister without portfolio") from 2023 to 2024. Before that, he was Israel's Minister of Defense from 2020 to 2022. He also served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2021 to 2022. From 2020 to 2021, he was the Alternate Prime Minister.
Benny Gantz was the 20th Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which is Israel's army, from 2011 to 2015. After his military career, he entered politics in 2018. He started a new political party called Israel Resilience. This party later joined with others to form a bigger group called Blue and White. This name refers to the colors of the Israeli flag. In 2022, Gantz became the leader of another political alliance called National Unity.
Gantz also served as the 17th Speaker of the Knesset, which is like the leader of Israel's parliament, for a short time in 2020. In April 2020, he agreed to work with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a special "rotation government". This meant they would share the role of prime minister. However, this government did not last. As Minister of Defense, Gantz was in charge of military actions like Operation Guardian of the Walls in Gaza. He continued as Defense Minister and became Deputy Prime Minister in a new government in June 2021, serving until December 2022.
In October 2023, after the Israel–Hamas war began, Gantz's National Unity party joined a special "war cabinet" with Netanyahu's party. Gantz was appointed as a minister without portfolio in this emergency government. However, he later resigned from this cabinet in June 2024.
Contents
About Benny Gantz
Early Life and Family
Benjamin Gantz was born in Kfar Ahim, Israel, in 1959. His parents were among the people who helped start this farming community in south-central Israel. He was their only child.
His mother, Malka, was a Holocaust survivor from Hungary. His father, Nahum, was from Romania and also survived the Holocaust. Both of his parents came to Israel after World War II. They were active in their community and believed strongly in building the country.
As a young person, Benny Gantz went to high school in Merkaz Shapira and a boarding school in Ramat HaSharon. He is married to Revital, and they have four children. They live in Rosh HaAyin.
Education and Beliefs
Benny Gantz studied at several important colleges. He has a degree in history from Tel Aviv University and two master's degrees: one in political science from the University of Haifa and another in National Resources Management from the National Defense University in the United States.
While Gantz is not religious in the traditional sense, he grew up with strong Zionist beliefs from his father. He has always felt a deep connection to the memory of the Holocaust, which was a big part of his family's history.
Military Career
Benny Gantz joined the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in 1977. He chose to become a paratrooper, which is a soldier trained to jump from airplanes. One of his first jobs was helping with security when Egyptian President Anwar Sadat visited Israel in 1977. As a paratrooper, he took part in military operations in Lebanon in 1978.
In 1979, Gantz became an officer after finishing Officer Candidate School. He served as a platoon leader and a company commander in the Paratroopers Brigade. He also trained with the U.S. Army Special Forces. He fought in the 1982 Lebanon War.
Later, he led a paratrooper battalion in operations in southern Lebanon. In 1991, he commanded a special unit during Operation Solomon. This was a mission to bring 14,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel by air. He also held important leadership roles during the Second Intifada and the 2006 Lebanon War.
Throughout his military career, Gantz commanded various units. These included the Shaldag Unit in the Israeli Air Force and the 35th Paratroopers Brigade. He also served as Israel's military representative in the United States from 2005 to 2009. After that, he became the deputy chief of the General Staff.
Chief of Staff
In February 2011, Benny Gantz was chosen to be the 20th Chief of the General Staff of the IDF. This is the highest position in the Israeli military. The Israeli government approved his appointment, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling him an "excellent officer and experienced commander."
On February 14, 2011, Gantz officially became the Chief of Staff. He served for four years, leading the IDF. During his time, he appointed the IDF's first female major-general, Orna Barbivai.
Gantz was in charge of the IDF during military operations against Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip. These operations included Operation Pillar of Defense and Operation Protective Edge.
Business Career
After leaving the army, Gantz became the chairman of a company called Fifth Dimension. This company worked on computer security and technology for law enforcement. It specialized in tracking information using smartphone software. The company later closed down due to financial reasons.
Political Career
Starting in Politics
In December 2018, Benny Gantz announced he was starting a new political party. On December 27, 2018, he officially launched the Israel Resilience Party. In his first big political speech in January 2019, Gantz said he wanted to make Israeli communities in the West Bank stronger. He also stated that Israel would never give up the Golan Heights. He talked about keeping the Jordan Valley as a border to protect Israel's identity as a Jewish state.
In February 2019, Gantz spoke at the Munich Security Conference. He listed the main challenges for the Western world as "extremist Iran, Islamic terror, and regional instability." He also criticized a decision to prevent some U.S. politicians from entering Israel.
Gantz worked with other political leaders like Yair Lapid and Moshe Ya'alon. They formed a political alliance called Blue and White on February 21, 2019. Gantz and Lapid agreed that if they won the election, they would take turns being Prime Minister.
Attempts to Form a Government
In the April 2019 election, Gantz's Blue and White alliance promised to set limits on how long a prime minister could serve. They also wanted to prevent politicians who had been accused of crimes from serving in the Knesset (Israel's parliament). The alliance won 35 seats, which was the same number as Netanyahu's party. However, Netanyahu was given the first chance to form a government. He was not able to, which led to new elections in September.
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In the September election, Blue and White won 33 seats, one more than Netanyahu's party. Gantz received more support from other parties to form a government. However, one party later withdrew its support. This meant Netanyahu again had more recommendations. Netanyahu tried but failed to form a government. Then, Gantz was given the chance, but he also failed. This led to a third election in March 2020.
Before the March 2020 election, Gantz and Lapid decided that Gantz would be the only candidate for prime minister from their alliance. The March election resulted in Netanyahu's party winning more seats. However, Gantz still received enough support from other parties to be asked to form a government.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel, Gantz changed his mind about not working with Netanyahu. He announced he was willing to join an emergency government with him. On March 26, Gantz was elected Speaker of the Knesset. This decision caused some parts of the Blue and White alliance to split off.
On April 20, Gantz and Netanyahu announced they had agreed to form a "unity government." This deal meant they would share power, with Gantz and Netanyahu taking turns as prime minister. Netanyahu would serve first, and Gantz would become Alternate Prime Minister and Minister of Defense. They were supposed to switch roles in October 2021. The new government was sworn in on May 17, with Gantz taking on his new roles.
Minister of Defense
Alternate Prime Minister
In November 2020, Gantz formed a military committee to look into a corruption case involving the purchase of submarines. However, the committee members resigned because of limits placed on their investigation.
Gantz had agreed to join Netanyahu's government because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, he disagreed with Netanyahu's plans to annex certain areas. He felt the pandemic should be the top priority. In December, their unity government collapsed, leading to new elections in March 2021.
After the Minister of Justice resigned, Gantz became the acting Minister of Justice for a short time. He was later officially approved for the position in April 2021.
In May 2021, as Minister of Defense, Gantz oversaw Operation Guardian of the Walls. This was a military operation in the Gaza Strip. Israel carried out many strikes during this operation. It ended on May 21 with a ceasefire agreement.
2021 Election and New Government
After the Blue and White alliance broke apart, the party's support in polls dropped. Many members left the party or retired from politics. Despite this, Blue and White won 8 seats in the 2021 election, which was more than many expected.
In April, Netanyahu was again given the chance to form a government but failed. The next day, Yair Lapid was given the chance. Lapid worked with Naftali Bennett to form a new unity government, where they would take turns as prime minister. Gantz's party joined this new government. Lapid became the Alternate Prime Minister, and Gantz remained the Defense Minister and also became a Deputy Prime Minister. The new government was sworn in on June 13.
Deputy Prime Minister
In October 2021, Gantz announced that six Palestinian human rights groups would be called terrorist organizations. The Ministry of Defense said these groups were connected to a different organization and were funneling money to them.
In November 2021, Gantz became the first Israeli Minister of Defense to visit Morocco. There, he signed an agreement for security cooperation. He also signed a similar defense agreement with Bahrain.
In May 2022, after some violence and hateful comments against Palestinians at a yearly event, Gantz called for two groups, La Familia and Lehava, to be named terrorist organizations.
2022 Election and Return to Opposition
After the Knesset was dissolved in June 2022, a new election was called for November 1. In July, Gantz announced a new alliance with Gideon Sa'ar's party, called 'Blue and White-The New Hope'. This alliance later included other important figures and was renamed the National Unity Party. The alliance won 12 seats in the election. Gantz was replaced as Defense Minister in December when a new government led by Netanyahu was formed.
Israel-Hamas War and Emergency Government
On October 7, 2023, the Israel–Hamas war began after an attack by Hamas militants. The next day, Gantz said he was willing to temporarily join Netanyahu's government to form a special "war cabinet." On October 11, Gantz and Netanyahu agreed on this new cabinet. Gantz joined as a minister without portfolio, along with four other members of his party. This agreement officially began on October 12.
In March 2024, Gantz's party left the National Unity alliance. On May 18, Gantz said he would resign from the cabinet if certain plans were not adopted. These plans included bringing back hostages, ending Hamas's rule, and making Gaza peaceful. He officially resigned on June 9.
Images for kids
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Gantz with fellow Blue and White alliance partners [L to R]: Moshe Yaalon, Gantz, Yair Lapid, and Gabi Ashkenazi.
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Gantz with United States President Donald Trump in January 2020
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Gantz with United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in May 2020
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Gantz meeting with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in Israel in April 2021
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Awards and Decorations
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See also
In Spanish: Benny Gantz para niños
