Posted on 09/29/24
| News Source: JPost
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was furious with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Israel when he was informed with very little notice that the IDF was about to kill Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, The Jerusalem Post has learned.
However, a US defense official said that the description of the call between Austin and Gallant was overstated and that a more accurate description would be that Austin was firm and candid in his conversation with Gallant.
Throughout the war, Gallant informed Austin of major developments, which has been a signature part of how the two governments have communicated, especially given the low level of trust between US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Considering that Israel changed foreign ministers and that Netanyahu has not given either Eli Cohen or his replacement Israel Katz much authority over higher-level foreign affairs (as opposed to internal Foreign Ministry staffing and relations with lower-profile countries), the Gallant-Austin relationship has taken on even more importance than the standard close relationship between Israeli and US defense chiefs.
Further, the two have met more often than some of their predecessors due to the numerous emergencies brought about by the war, in addition to their over 125 phone calls, with some coming multiple times in a day.