Daniel Hagari

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Daniel Hagari
Daniel Hagari. IV.jpg
Native name
דניאל הגרי
Nickname(s)Dani
Born1976 (age 48–49)
Tel Aviv, Israel
AllegianceFlag of Israel.svg Israel
BranchNaval Ensign of Israel.svg  Israeli Navy
Years of service1995–present
Rank IDF tat aluf gold.svg Tat-Aluf (rear admiral)
Unit IDF Spokesperson's Unit
Commands
Battles / wars

Daniel Hagari (Hebrew : דניאל "דני" הגרי; born 1976) is a retired Israel Defense Forces Rear Admiral (Tat-Aluf) who served as the head of the IDF Spokesperson's Unit from 2023 to 2025. Previously he served as the commander of the Israeli Navy's operations directorate, the Chief of Staff's assistant, Commander of the Shayetet 13 marine commando unit and head of the office of the Chief of Staff.

Contents

Military service

Hagari joined the Israel Defense Forces in March 1995, and volunteered to the naval special operations unit, Shayetet 13. [1] After completing the warrior course training in the Shaytet, he then went to the infantry officer course. At the end of the course he returned to the Shayetet 13, and was appointed a platoon commander during Operation Defensive Shield. He later served as deputy commander of the Gadsar Nahal between 2003 and 2004. [2]

In 2007, Hagari was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel (Sgan-Aluf) and appointed commander of a vessel squadron in Shayetet 13, and served in this position until 2009. He was then appointed commander of a training squadron in Shayetet 13 between 2009 and 2011. He later served as deputy commander of Shayetet 13 between 2011 and 2012. Afterwards he was appointed head of the Chief of Staff Benny Gantz's office, a position he served in between the years 2013–2015. [1]

In 2015, Hagari was promoted to the rank of colonel (Aluf-Mishne) and appointed head of the operations directorate of the Israeli Navy, until 2017. [3] [1] In May 2017, he was appointed as Chief of Staff's Gadi Eizenkot's assistant, and served in the position during the Northern Shield operation; in this position, he served until 2019. [1] On 31 July 2019, he was appointed Commander of Shayetet 13, a position in which he served until 15 June 2021. [4] [1] For the activities of Shayetet 13 under his command, he was awarded the Chief of Staff Medal of Appreciation and the Chief of Staff's award for outstanding units in 2020, and the Chief of Staff's citation on 16 June 2021. [5] [6] [7] At the end of his position, he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General (Tat-Aluf) and on 17 June 2021, he assumed his position as the Chief of the Navy's Fleet. [1]

On 29 March 2023, Hagari was appointed Chief of the IDF Spokesperson's Unit, [8] [2] succeeding Ran Kochav. Hagari's appointment was the continuation of a recent policy to tap career military officials instead of civilian journalists as head of the Spokesperson's Unit. [9]

On 14 November 2023, in a video posted on official IDF web channels, Hagari guided viewers through the basements of Al-Shifa Hospital and Rantisi Children's Hospital in Gaza after their capture by Israeli forces. The goal of this video was to convey "evidence" of Hamas' use of these facilities as headquarters or for other war purposes – a claim that was denied by the Islamist organization, as well as by humanitarian and medical organizations working at the health facilities. [10] [11] A key part of the video was what Hagari claimed was a list of names and dates stuck to the basement wall, showing Hamas terrorists’ shifts in guarding Israeli hostages. In fact, the list showed not names, but the days of the week, written in Arabic. [12] [13]

In December 2024, Hagar was reprimanded for overstepping his authority. During a press briefing, Hagari had criticized a bill in the Knesset that would grant immunity to defense personnel leaking classified information to the prime minister. [14] [15] Hagari called the bill "very dangerous to state security and to the IDF". He later acknowledged his overreach and apologized for his remarks. [14] [15] The Knesset bill was widely viewed as related to the "BibiLeaks" scandal, in which doctored intelligence had been leaked by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office to the German tabloid Bild-Zeitung as well as The Jewish Chronicle. [16]

On 7 March 2025, after a conversation between the Lieutenant general Eyal Zamir, Chief of the General Staff, and Hagari, they agreed that Hagari would end his role during the next weeks. [17] It was claimed that Hagari requested the Major general rank, and Zamir declined. [18] During the 12-day Iran–Israel war, Hagari returned to duty, serving behind the scenes as the acting director of the Spokesperson’s Unit and overseeing internal operations from the media operations center, known by its Hebrew acronym Hamad. [19] He went back into retirement after the end of the war. [20]

Personal life

Hagari grew up with two brothers [21] in Tel Aviv. He has a wife and four children. He earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy and a master's degree in diplomacy and security, both from Tel Aviv University. [1]

Reception

Hagari was well loved as a spokesperson in Israel, being seen as a trusted voice during the Gaza war, offering a calm presence for Israelis during his many media appearances at a time of national turmoil. [19] [22] While popular with the public, Hagari clashed with Israel's political echelon, notably defense minister Israel Katz, and was criticized by Haaretz columnist Gideon Levy as essentially a propagandist who told comforting lies. [22] [23]

Awards and decorations

Hagari was awarded three campaign ribbons for his service during three conflicts, as well as one Chief of Staff Citation.

Chief of Staff Citation Second Lebanon War South Lebanon Security Zone Operation Protective Edge
Zrm.svg Lebanon2ribon.svg Security Zone in Lebanon Campaign Ribbon. X (cropped).jpg Protective Edge Operation ribbon.svg

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Spokesperson, IDF. "IDF Spokesperson: The biography of Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Hagari" (PDF).
  2. 1 2 Buchbut, Amir (29 March 2023). "יתמודד עם סערות המילואים ופיטורי גלנט: דובר צה"ל החדש נכנס לתפקיד - וואלה! חדשות". וואלה! (in Hebrew). Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  3. ↑ Caspit, Ben (16 April 2017). "ראש חטיבת המבצעים בחיל הים: "חמאס לומד מחיזבאללה כל הזמן והולך בדרכיו"". www.maariv.co.il. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  4. ↑ "אלוף-משנה ד׳ מונה למפקד שייטת 13 בטקס שנערך בבסיס בעתלית". 0404 (in Hebrew). 31 July 2019. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  5. ↑ "אלה היחידות שיקבלו "אות הערכה מבצעי" מהרמטכ"ל". www.idf.il. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  6. ↑ "אלו היחידות המצטיינות הזוכות בפרס הרמטכ"ל לשנת 2020". www.idf.il. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  7. ↑ "הרמטכ״ל העניק צל"ש לשייטת 13 ול-4 מלוחמיה". www.idf.il. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  8. ↑ זיתון, יואב (5 January 2023). "המינוי הראשון של הרמטכ"ל הבא הלוי: דובר צה"ל, לשעבר מפקד שייטת 13". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  9. ↑ Fabian, Emanuel (5 January 2023). "Senior Navy officer Daniel Hagari tapped as IDF spokesperson". The Times of Israel . Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  10. ↑ "Palestinians inside Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital dig mass grave, no plan to rescue babies". Al Arabiya English.
  11. ↑ "Gaza: Unlawful Israeli Hospital Strikes Worsen Health Crisis". Human Rights Watch. 14 November 2023.
  12. ↑ "IDF shows alleged footage of Hamas tunnels under children's hospital, but is it accurate?". ITV. 14 November 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  13. ↑ "דובר צה"ל הציג "לוח שומרים" שתורגם לא נכון ותדלק את האנטי ישראלים ברשת". Mako. 14 November 2023.
  14. 1 2 Haaretz. "IDF spox rapped for slamming bill granting immunity to defense personnel leaking info". Haaretz.com. Archived from the original on 5 December 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  15. 1 2 Shpigel, Noa. "Israeli ministers advance 'Feldstein Bill,' meant to ease penalties of BibiLeaks case". Haaretz.com. Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  16. ↑ McKernan, Bethan (4 November 2024). "Alleged Netanyahu leak may have harmed Gaza hostage deal, says court". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  17. ↑ Bohbot, Amir (7 March 2025). "לאחר 30 שנות שירות: דובר צה"ל, תא"ל דניאל הגרי, יסיים את תפקידו" [After 30 years of service: IDF spokesman, Brigadier General Daniel Hagari, will end his position]. Walla.co.il. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
  18. ↑ Bohbot, Amir (7 March 2025). "הדחה בפועל, או פרישה בגלל ויכוח על דרגה? קרב הגרסאות בסערת הגרי" [Actual ouster, or resignation due to a dispute over rank? The battle of versions in the Hagari storm]. Walla.co.il. Retrieved 8 March 2025.
  19. 1 2 Ganot, Gal (15 June 2025). "Reinforcements are here: Hagari returns to IDF Spokesperson's Unit amid war with Iran". Ynetnews. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  20. ↑ "Former Israeli military spox. Daniel Hagari returns to retirement | The Jerusalem Post". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 26 June 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  21. ↑ Hagari visits his disabled brother Yoni in October 2023 at the rehabilitation village of Adi Negev: "IDF spokesman at ADI: 'This is what we're fighting for'. "This place, which I have known from the day it was built, highlights the goodness and strength of Israeli society," said Brig. Gen. Daniel Hagari". JNS (Jewish News Syndicate). 4 November 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  22. 1 2 Levy, Gideon (29 March 2025). "The Zionist Left's Latest National Redeemer: The Ousted IDF Spokesperson". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 26 April 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  23. ↑ Fabian, Emanuel (7 March 2025). "IDF spokesman Hagari to retire from military, in move widely seen as dismissal". The Times of Israel. ISSN   0040-7909 . Retrieved 22 August 2025.
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