Gideon Saar, former journalist and lawyer was named Israel's new foreign minister. AP
Just five years ago Saar openly challenged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the leadership of Israel's right-wing Likud party.
The former journalist and lawyer then left Likud in 2020, saying it had been corrupted under Netanyahu's leadership, to form the hawkish, right-wing New Hope party.
Following the outbreak of the Israel war on Gaza last year, Saar joined the emergency war cabinet, before leaving the administration.
In September, he joined Netanyahu's government as minister without a portfolio.
"As a long-time member of the government and cabinet, Gideon Saar brings substantial experience and sound judgement in security and policy matters, making him a valuable addition to our leadership team," Netanyahu said Tuesday in a statement issued by his office.
"The addition of Saar and his party will strengthen the coalition and stabilise the government, which is crucial at all times, particularly in times of war."
The Israeli genocidal war against Gaza has killed at least 43,391 people, most of them women and children, with more than 102,347 others injured since 7 October 2023.
Saar was appointed foreign minister to replace Israel Katz, who took over the defense portfolio on Tuesday after Netanyahu fired Yoav Gallant over an erosion of trust during the Gaza war.
Gallant had for months clashed with Netanyahu over his approach to talks on a possible captive release deal and on the future of Gaza.
Israeli media earlier this year quoted Gallant as privately telling a parliamentary committee that a hostage release deal "is stalling... in part because of Israel".
Netanyahu's office accused Gallant of adopting an "anti-Israel narrative".
Path to power
Saar entered politics in 1999 as government secretary, before being elected to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, in 2003.
He rose through the ranks to become interior minister and education minister in previous Netanyahu governments.
In 2021 he joined the government of former prime minister Naftali Bennett as justice minister with the title of deputy prime minister.
His political star had, however, dimmed in recent years.
Though he participated in the emergency government formed in the wake of the October 7 attack, he joined the opposition in March after failing to get a seat in the war cabinet.
He is considered more right-wing than Netanyahu, but lacks his charisma.
He has spoken out in favour of the all-out annexation of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
His ideology is "that of the Likud" but he believes that the party has "abandoned its values under Netanyahu", deputy Sharren Haskel, a close friend of Saar's, told AFP.
With a father who grew up in Argentina and a mother with roots in Uzbekistan, Saar calls himself a practising Jew while affirming that "every Israeli citizen must be able to live freely according to his conscience and way of life".
He is married to high-profile Israeli journalist Geula Even, with whom he has two children. A daughter from his first marriage, Alona Saar, is a popular actress.
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