Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is preparing to fire war minister Yoav Gallant and is considering appointing New Hope chairman Gideon Sa’ar as his replacement, broadcaster Kan reported, citing an official within the Prime Minister’s office.

Following the report, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir tweeted that he had been demanding Gallant’s ouster for months “and the time has come to do so immediately.”

Rumors that Netanyahu would replace Gallant have been circulating for months, with Sa’ar denying in July that he had received an offer that would bring him back into the coalition.

Relations between Gallant and Netanyahu have been tense ever since Netanyahu announced he was firing Gallant in March 2023 over his criticism of the cabinet’s judicial overhaul — before reversing course two weeks later under intense public pressure.

Members of Netanyahu’s cabinet have been calling for Gallant’s termination for months, angered, among other issues, by his opposition to an ultra-Orthodox enlistment bill backed by the cabinet and his public break with the prime minister over a captive deal and control over the so-called Philadelphi Corridor in Gaza.

In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office said reports of negotiations with Gideon Sa’ar “are incorrect.”

Sa’ar also denied the report, with a spokesman stating “there is nothing new in this matter.”