One of the most challenging positions in the world is prime minister of Israel. Even in times of relative calm, the role requires navigating issues of religion and state, economic disparities, tensions between the center and the periphery, relations with the Diaspora, and more.
Security and foreign affairs are constant challenges, and these intensify during times of crisis, even before the automatic support our enemies receive in many quarters and the ever-lurking threat of antisemitism.
Given these immense pressures, it is only natural to expect that whoever holds this office would surround themselves with the most capable minds available to support sound decision-making and ensure effective implementation. Research consistently shows that leaders who consult talented advisers and are open to diverse perspectives make better decisions.
In Israel, the quality of a leader’s inner circle is a matter of survival. Indeed, historically, we have seen top-tier individuals in critical roles such as cabinet secretary, chief of staff, and senior adviser. Yet even this vital standard has been cast aside in recent years.
Among the close aides of Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, were Yitzhak Navon and Shimon Peres, both of whom later served as president of Israel. Some might say, “They were party loyalists; naturally, Ben-Gurion chose them.” True, but they were also exceptionally gifted – and yes, no one is perfect, and both have their critics.
Peres, a knowledgeable and multilingual strategist, played a key role in establishing Israel’s nuclear program. Navon was to write the popular play Bustan Sephardi. Prof. Elyakim Rubinstein, who later became deputy president of the Supreme Court, served as cabinet secretary to Yitzhak Shamir and Yitzhak Rabin, leaders from opposite sides of the political spectrum.
Fast forward, and we arrive at the Netanyahu era, which stretches intermittently from 1996 to the present. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, too, has had capable aides. Two of them, Avigdor Liberman and Naftali Bennett, went on to become prominent political leaders in their own right. Today, both view Netanyahu’s leadership as dangerous and are working to replace him.
So, who is the Elyakim Rubinstein of today, the thoughtful, seasoned adviser whispering in the prime minister’s ear during one of Israel’s most difficult periods, challenging his conceptions? Where is the Shimon Peres to help forge strategic alliances, even as global isolation deepens? Is there a Yitzhak Navon, an empathetic bridge builder, desperately needed in a fractured society?
Where are Netanyahu's seasoned advisors?
There is no need to introduce Yonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein. It is a matter of public record that, in the midst of war, those close aides of the prime minister were paid by Qatar, a country that hosts Hamas leaders and boasts other such distinctions. The current national security adviser is Tzachi Hanegbi. For the first time, the role is held not by a senior figure from the defense establishment, such as an IDF general or Mossad division head, but by a career politician.
The Prime Minister’s Office currently lacks a permanent director-general. The acting director, Drorit Steinmetz, who has a record of irregularities, assumed the role following the departure of Yossi Shelley.
Shelley, now serving as ambassador to the UAE, drew attention for a tweet during his earlier term as ambassador to Brazil in which he childishly blurred a lobster on his plate. A quick online search reveals a long trail of investigations and disciplinary issues before he managed Netanyahu’s 2005 Likud primary campaign and also after.
In early 2023, Shelley was appointed director-general of the Prime Minister’s Office and was thus in charge of coordinating the pathetic inter-governmental response to the war that broke out nine months later. Today, in his new role, reports are rife of his inappropriate conduct, apparently leading to Emirati demands to terminate his appointment.
As everything around us falls apart, it is easy to find who to blame. The whole world is against us. Everyone is antisemitic. Progressives support Hamas. Hasbara – Israel’s information campaign – is failing. Internally, the media, the Left, and the protesters are all responsible. But if we want to truly understand the collapse, we must not only look at who holds one of the toughest jobs in the world but also with whom he chooses to surround himself.
The writer was Israel’s first ambassador to the Baltic states after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, ambassador to South Africa, and congressional liaison officer at the embassy in Washington. She is a graduate of Israel’s National Defense College.