Col. (res.) German Giltman was summoned Friday for a clarification meeting at the office of IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, hours after Defense Minister Israel Katz announced he was blocking Giltman’s promotion over alleged support for refusal to serve.
Giltman told associates he has “never supported refusal and opposes it,” adding that he has logged more than 700 days of reserve duty since the war began.
Katz said earlier Friday he informed Zamir he was rejecting the recommendation to promote Giltman, calling him one of the leaders of Brothers in Arms, the protest group that opposed the government’s judicial overhaul. Katz said Giltman had “called for refusal,” and therefore “will not serve in the IDF nor be promoted to any position.”
Members of the IDF General Staff Forum, however, backed Giltman’s appointment and praised him in internal discussions, where his involvement in the protest movement was not raised. Giltman is also considered close to Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman — the prime minister’s military secretary and incoming Mossad director — who supported the promotion. Other senior officers, including Maj. Gen. Itzik Cohen, Maj. Gen. Dado Bar Kalifa and Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, also endorsed him.
Senior IDF officials said Friday they had not been aware of Giltman’s participation in Brothers in Arms.
Giltman was slated to become commander of the Ground Forces Command’s headquarters center and be promoted to brigadier general. Like Zamir, he rose through the Armored Corps. Born in the former Soviet Union, he advanced to battalion and brigade command and later served as the IDF defense attaché in Moscow.
After completing a 30-year career and being discharged less than a year before the Oct. 7 attacks, he became an active member of Brothers in Arms and a prominent critic of the government’s judicial overhaul.
The defense minister’s announcement came as a surprise inside the IDF, where officers learned of Katz’s decision through the media. During the war, Giltman served more than 700 days in reserve duty as operations director and chief of staff of the 162nd Division, where he had previously been deputy commander. The division is the Southern Command’s lead maneuver force and spent the longest continuous period operating inside Gaza.
Giltman’s performance during the war earned him widespread praise, leading to the recommendation for promotion. Those close to him said Friday he has never advocated refusal to serve.