Major General Dan Harel, currently serving as the IDF's defense attaché in Washington, was appointed to replace Major General Moshe Kaplinsky as the IDF's deputy Chief of General Staff.
Defense Minister, Amir Peretz, approved the appointment Friday evening, as well as the appointment of Colonel Avi Benyahu as the new IDF Spokesperson. Benyahu, who currently serves as chief editor of IDF Radio, will be promoted to Brigadier General.
Harel (52), a former artillery officer, was the first officer from the artillery corps to be appointed Chief of IDF's Southern Command. In that capacity, he was responsible for overseeing the 2005 disengagement.
Harel's tenure as the Chief of Southern Command coincided with a time of very serious security threats from Gaza, including many terror attacks and attempted terror attacks in and from that region.
Following the appointment, IDF's Central Command Chief Yair Naveh, who was also in the running for the position, is expected to retire.
Kaplinsky, on the other, who is taking from official positions in order to complete an advanced degree in coordination with the IDF, is eligible to replace Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi, the current Chief of Staff, when the latter completes his tenure in a few years.