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In the annals of Israeli politics, where the line between triumph and tragedy is often drawn in blood and sand, there comes a moment when even the most steadfast warriors step back, not in defeat, but in a quiet act of reckoning. Such was the case on Tuesday, when Ron Dermer, Israel's Strategic Affairs Minister and a figure as unyielding as the Judean hills, tendered his resignation to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It was a departure laced not with bitterness, but with the unflinching clarity that has long defined Dermer: a reminder that the stewardship of a nation's survival demands more than endurance; it demands wisdom.
Dermer, who had helmed the negotiations for the release of hostages with a tenacity that bordered on the heroic, did not mince words in his letter. "This government will be remembered both for the October 7 attack and for its management of the two-and-a-half-year-long war and the seven fronts that followed," he wrote, a sentence that lands like a stone skipped across the Dead Sea, rippling out to expose the fractures beneath the surface of Israel's protracted ordeal.
Dermer, who had helmed the negotiations for the release of hostages with a tenacity that bordered on the heroic, did not mince words in his letter. "This government will be remembered both for the October 7 attack and for its management of the two-and-a-half-year-long war and the seven fronts that followed," he wrote, a sentence that lands like a stone skipped across the Dead Sea, rippling out to expose the fractures beneath the surface of Israel's protracted ordeal.
One recalls Dermer at the Jewish News Syndicate conference in Jerusalem just months earlier, on April 28, 2025, his voice steady as he spoke of redemption amid the rubble. Now, in stepping away, he honors a vow made to his family: two years of service, extended twice with their blessing, but no more. "I wish to thank you for the opportunity to serve alongside you in the past three years and for the trust you placed in me to deal with the most significant issues Israel is facing at this critical time," he added, a gracious nod to the man who appointed him, even as the shadows of their shared burdens lengthen.The image lingers: Netanyahu, Dermer, and the Prime Minister's military secretary, Maj.-Gen. Roman Gofman, huddled in the Pentagon on July 9, 2025, with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth just out of frame—a tableau of alliance forged in the forge of necessity. Israeli media had whispered of this exit as far back as October, murmurs that Dermer might linger for a final flourish of diplomacy before fading into the wings. Israel Hayom had noted he hadn't fixed a date, suggesting a man who, like the prophets of old, times his truths to the hour of greatest need.
Netanyahu, ever the survivor, responded with measured warmth: "Thank you, Ron, for your tremendous help to me and the state of Israel. I am sure you have much more to contribute in the future." It was the kind of valediction that hints at unfinished chapters, for in the theater of Jerusalem's corridors, no exit is ever truly final.
And yet, in Dermer's parting words, there echoes the eternal pulse of Jewish resolve, a coda that lifts the gaze from the immediate fray to the horizon of history. "For a hundred generations, Jews dreamed of a time when the Jewish people would have a sovereign state. Four generations have had the privilege of realizing this dream," he concluded. "With this blessing comes a sacred responsibility: to secure this dream for future generations. I feel immense gratitude that I had the privilege of serving the State of Israel and dedicating myself to this noble responsibility. 'On behalf of all the people of Israel, thank you!'"
Tributes poured in like libations at a solemn rite. Opposition leader Yair Lapid, no stranger to the fray, captured the essence of Dermer's legacy: "I have had, and still have, many disagreements with Ron Dermer, but I have never doubted that he is a Zionist and a patriot who wants what is best for the country. I thank him and wish him success in the future." Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, whose own vision for Israel's security burns with fervor, lauded him as "absolutely the right man in the right place, and this is true for every public role he has held so far." He evoked the late-night debates that forge steel: "Thank you for the joint work for the future of the State of Israel, thank you for hours of discussions and even disagreements when the goal was clear – preserving and strengthening Israel's civil security. The people of Israel owe you deep gratitude, and I have no doubt that in any role you choose, the people of Israel and the future of the State of Israel will always be in your sights. On behalf of all the people of Israel – thank you!"
Even National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, whose rhetoric cuts like a desert wind, offered a rare note of unity: "I would like to thank Ron Dermer for his great contribution to the people of Israel during these times. Wishing you great success, Ron."
In an age when Israel's enemies circle like vultures and its friends waver like reeds, Dermer's resignation is no mere administrative footnote. It is a mirror held up to a government scarred by October 7—a scar that, two and a half years on, still weeps across seven fronts. Yet in his grace and grit, Dermer reminds us that the Jewish state endures not by the machinations of men alone, but by the unquenchable fire of those who, generation after generation, dare to dream it into permanence.
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