Israel Defense Forces Brig. Gen. Ephraim “Effie” Defrin took over as the IDF’s chief spokesman on Thursday, replacing Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, who served as spokesperson since 2023 and has left the military.
Defrin took over from Hagari during a change of command ceremony held at a military base in Tel Aviv on Thursday morning, the IDF said.
Defrin, who was seriously wounded while serving as a tank battalion commander in the 2006 Second Lebanon War and in his most recent position led the military’s International Cooperation Division, said he would be “first and foremost the spokesman for the [IDF] soldiers.
“The main purpose is clear to me beyond any doubt: to do everything possible to strengthen the public’s trust in the IDF—trust that forms a significant foundation for the army’s resilience, for strengthening its power and ensuring our future here,” the incoming spokesman said.
“We will always act with commitment to truth and, no less important, with the appropriate openness and willingness to recognize mistakes and learn from them,” Defrin added.
He concluded, “May we all soon merit to hear an IDF Spokesperson’s announcement: ‘The last of the hostages in the Gaza Strip has just been transferred to IDF forces.’”
In his farewell speech, Hagari emphasized that “all parts of society need to get under the stretcher,” in an apparent political statement that referenced the ongoing debate regarding the ultra-Orthodox draft.
“We need more fighters in the IDF now—not in a few years—because the war is happening now,” said Hagari in remarks shared by the army.
During his tenure, Hagari, who served in the IDF since 1995, repeatedly clashed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
In June, Hagari was widely criticized after he told a Channel 13 News broadcaster that the government’s goal of ending Hamas rule in Gaza can only truly be accomplished by putting in place a viable alternative.
In December, Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened disciplinary action against Hagari after he expressed in-uniform criticism of the “Feldstein Law,” legislation making its way through the Knesset that would give immunity to members of the security establishment who deliver classified files to the prime minister or the defense minister.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir stated on Thursday, “Hagari was the man who conveyed to the public, night after night, both the difficult news and the good news—all with courage, sensitivity, and composure.”
