Former tank commander Eyal Zamir has been sworn in as Israel’s new military chief amid growing uncertainty over the expired ceasefire in Gaza.
Previously director of the defence ministry, the 59-year-old replaces chief of staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, who resigned in January admitting he had failed to fulfil his mandate.
At his swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday at military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Zamir said he was ready for the challenges ahead, noting that while “Hamas has indeed suffered a severe blow … it has not yet been defeated. The mission is not yet accomplished.”
Speaking before Zamir, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was “determined” to achieve victory in its war.
Fighting in Gaza has been halted since January under the first phase of a multistage truce brokered by Qatar and Egypt and supported by the United States that has allowed the exchange of 33 Israeli captives and 5 Thai captives for about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
But some Israeli ministers have warned that their forces could resume fighting if there is no agreement on bringing back the 59 captives that remain.
Israeli troops have pulled back from some of their positions in Gaza but talks that were intended to agree on a second phase of the truce that would see the release of the remaining living captives and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces before an end to the war have not begun.
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