Nitzan Alon
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Major General Nitzan Alon (; born 26 February 1965) is a general in the
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
. In December 2011, he was named the General officer commanding Central Command and became Head of Central Command in early 2012.


Early life and education

He studied at the Technion, obtaining a Bachelor's degree with a double major in
Physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...
and
Materials Engineering Materials science is an Interdisciplinarity, interdisciplinary field of researching and discovering materials. Materials engineering is an engineering field of finding uses for materials in other fields and industries. The intellectual origi ...
.


Career

Between 1984 and 2001, Alon was assigned to various positions in the IDF elite General Staff Special Forces
Sayeret Matkal Sayeret Matkal () (formerly Unit 269 or Unit 262) (English: General Staff Reconnaissance Unit), is the special reconnaissance unit (''sayeret'') of Israel's General Staff (''matkal''). It is considered one of the premier special forces units of ...
, being appointed its commander in 1998, serving in that position until 2001. While commanding Sayeret Matkal, he was awarded the Chief of Staff Citation for a covert mission he commanded. In 2001, he began working as a research associate in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
In 2003, he was appointed as commander of the IDF 551st Brigade Hitzey HaEsh (Fire Arrows) and in 2005 as commander of the Etzyon Regional Brigade in the IDF Central Command. In 2007, he was appointed as Head of the Israel Defense Military Intelligence. From 2009 until October 2011, he served as commander of the
Judea and Samaria Division The Israeli 877th "Judea and Samaria" Division (, ; also known as the West Bank Division) is a regional Division (military), division of the Israeli Central Command, Central Command. It is responsible for Israeli military activity in the Judea ...
. In 2012, he became the new head of Central Command. The appointment was criticized by right wing organisations and political figures, including representatives of the
Jewish settlers Israeli settlements, also called Israeli colonies, are the civilian communities built by Israel throughout the Israeli-occupied territories. They are populated by Israeli citizens, almost exclusively of Jewish identity or ethnicity, and hav ...
in the
West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
. A spokesperson for the
Mateh Binyamin Regional Council Mateh Binyamin Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Binyamin,'' Lit. Council for the Region of the Tribe of Benjamin) is a Regional Councils in Israel, regional council Local government in Israel, governing 47 Israeli settlements and Israe ...
stated that Alon's appointment to head the IDF's Central Command "represents a certain aspect of '
price tag A price tag is a label declaring the price of an item for sale. It may be a sticker or attached by twist tie or other means. Some jurisdictions require items (possibly exceptions for bulk good and produce) to be individually marked with the p ...
' on the part of the defense minister", but gave Alon credit for being "intelligent, wise and courageous", according to ''
Arutz Sheva ''Arutz Sheva'' (), also known in English as ''Israel National News'', is an Israeli media network identifying with religious Zionism. It offers online news articles in Hebrew language, Hebrew, English language, English, and Russian language, R ...
''. During his term as commander of the Judea and Samaria Division, Alon was harshly criticized by the Jewish settlers in the West Bank who claim that he is "stacked against the settler movement". In July 2011, settlers attacked his military jeep at Tapuah Junction, and protested outside his home, harassing him and his family. ''
The Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is an English language, English-language Israeli broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, Israel, founded in 1932 during the Mandate for Palestine, British Mandate of Mandatory Palestine, Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''Th ...
'' called him "the most radical, politically insubordinate officer to have held the position in recent memory", claiming that he "went out of his way to demonize and attack Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria, laimingwithout evidence continuously ... that acts of vandalism against Arab property in Judea and Samaria and inside of the
1949 armistice lines The Green Line, or 1949 Armistice border, is the demarcation line set out in the 1949 Armistice Agreements between the armies of Israel and those of its neighbors (Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria) after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It served ...
is the work of Jewish residents of the areas". At the end of his term as commander of the Judea and Samaria Division, Alon stated: "Even today an extremist minority, small in number but not in influence, could bring about a major escalation via acts that are dubbed 'price tag', but amount to terrorism. hese actsshould not just be condemned for their inherent injustice and stupidity; they must be stopped, and their perpetrators arrested, more effectively than we have succeeded in doing thus far". In an editorial, the Israeli daily ''
Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...
'' called his stance "supremely statesmanlike", and the proof "that not only is he a brave and decorated soldier, but he is also a man of conscience, who fears for the future of his society". In October 2023, following the Hamas-led attack on Israel, Alon was appointed as the IDF's Commander of the Intelligence Array for Locating the Abducted and Missing Persons. In that role, he served as one of a four person delegation for negotiating a ceasefire and hostage release agreement. According to leaked reports, Alon had privately criticized the government headed by Netanyahu of hindering an agreement.


Personal life

Alon is married to Mor Alon. The couple has four children.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alon, Nitzan 1965 births Living people Israeli generals Technion – Israel Institute of Technology alumni Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Israeli military personnel