Bennett can 'fix Israel after Oct. 7,' retired IDF general on B'Yachad slate says - interview

Tibon’s comments came at B’Yachad’s Knesset slate unveiling in Tel Aviv on Sunday, before the deadline for parties to submit their final candidate lists.

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett can “fix Israel after the chaos of October 7,” retired IDF general and counterterrorism expert Major-General (res.) Noam Tibon told The Jerusalem Post, as he spoke on his security priorities as a candidate on Bennett’s B’Yachad slate.

Tibon’s comments came at B’Yachad’s Knesset slate unveiling in Tel Aviv on Sunday, before the deadline for parties to submit their final candidate lists.

He received the sixth spot on Bennett’s slate, and with recent polls projecting B’Yachad to win around 15 seats, Tibon is well-positioned to enter the next Knesset.

'I think we have the best team'

The B’Yachad party was formed from an alliance between Bennett and opposition leader Yair Lapid’s centrist Yesh Atid Party. It is one of the leading parties in the opposition bloc seeking to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the October elections.

“I think we have the best team. And it’s a team of professionals. And Naftali Bennett is coming with experience,” Tibon told the Post.

Regarding Bennett and his leadership, Tibon spoke of the past government, saying he believed Bennett “was a great prime minister.”

“ He made some mistakes,” Tibon said, but added that he believed Bennett had learned from them.

“I believe that we can fix Israel after the chaos of October 7. We have a plan, you know. We’re going to touch everything,” Tibon said.

Tibon is considered a top expert in the field

Tibon served in the IDF for 35 years in senior command positions, specializing in combat operations and counterterrorism. He has since been considered a top expert in the field.

During the October 7 massacre, Tibon drove to Kibbutz Nahal Oz and rescued residents from the kibbutz, including members of his own family.

Regarding improving Israel’s security after October 7, Tibon said that his first priority for the country was to “bring security back to the people in the North [and] to the people in the South.”

Further, he said that it was required to “bring a new doctrine to Israeli security.”

“We need to win the war against Hamas, against Hezbollah, to disarm them, which didn’t happen yet.”

In order to defeat the country’s enemies, Tibon said that Israel required “a much bigger army.”

“We need to recruit the ultra-Orthodox. And everyone who will not serve will not get a shekel from the state of Israel,” he added.

"We're going to recruit the Orthodox. We're going to fix the economy."

Tibon also said that B’Yachad would work “to fix education in Israel.”

“We’re going to change the whole balance in Israel. And we’re going to shut down the poison machine,” Tibon said.