Israel army spokesman Hagari to retire
TEL AVIV
The Israeli military's chief spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari will step down in the coming weeks, the army announced Friday.
A former commando, Hagari became popular after the war with Hamas erupted in October 2023, briefing the media and the general public almost daily - sometimes several times a day.
An army statement said that Hagari's resignation, days after a new military chief was sworn it, has been approved by the new top commander, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir.
According to the statement, Hagari, 49, will step down "in the coming weeks", though no exact date was given.
Since Oct. 9, he has had a constant presence in the media, briefing journalists on Israeli soil and during embeds with troops inside the Gaza Strip.
His televised briefings, which usually included questions from reporters, were often scrutinised at home and abroad, in a war where information and narrative rivalled military action in importance.
Hagari has shown maps, satellite images, audio clips and videos that illustrated the Israel's questionable actions and helped support the argument that Hamas militants were using hospitals as command centres - an assertion central to Israel's case but firmly denied by the Palestinian group.
Many international media outlets have questioned the credibility of the military's evidence.
During Iran's first direct attack on Israel in April 2024, Hagari was on television almost hourly, providing real-time updates on the military's response.
More than 48,400 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and more than 111,800 have been injured in a brutal Israeli onslaught on Gaza since October 2023. The assault, which left the enclave in ruins, was paused under a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold on Jan. 19.
