Back رئيس الأركان العامة (إسرائيل) Arabic رئيس الاركان العامه (اسرائيل) ARZ Ramatcal AST Ramatcal Catalan سەرۆکی ئەرکانی گشتی (ئیسرائیل) CKB Ramatkal Czech Ramatcal Spanish رئیس ستاد کل ارتش (اسرائیل) Persian Chef d'État-Major (Israël) French ראש המטה הכללי HE
| Chief of the General Staff | |
|---|---|
| ראש המטה הכללי | |
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| Ministry of Defense | |
| Abbreviation | Ramatkal |
| Member of | General Staff |
| Reports to | Minister of Defense |
| Seat | Rabin Camp, HaKirya, Tel Aviv |
| Nominator | Minister of Defense |
| Appointer | Cabinet of Israel |
| Term length | 3 years; can be extended by 1 year |
| Formation | 1 June 1947 |
| First holder | Rav Aluf Yaakov Dori |
| Deputy | Deputy Chief |
The Chief of the General Staff, also known as the Commander-in-Chief of the Israel Defense Forces (Hebrew: רֹאשׁ הַמַּטֶּה הַכְּלָלִי, romanized: Rosh hamateh haklali, abbreviated Ramatkal—רמטכ"ל), is the professional head of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The current Chief of the General Staff is Herzi Halevi.
At any given time, the Chief of the General Staff is the only active officer holding the IDF's highest rank, rav aluf (רַב־אַלּוּף), which is usually translated into English as lieutenant general, a three-star rank. The only exception to this rule occurred during the Yom Kippur War, when former Chief of the General Staff Haim Bar-Lev, who was a cabinet member at the outbreak of and during the war, was brought out of retirement and installed as chief of Southern Command.[1] For a brief period, he and Chief of the General Staff David Elazar were both in active service with the rank of rav aluf.
- ^ "Lt. Gen. Chaim Bar Lev (1968-1972)". www.idf.il. Archived from the original on 8 June 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2021.