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    Roman Gofman (born November 30, 1976) is an Israeli Defence Forces officer with the rank of Aluf who now serves as the Prime Minister’s Military Secretary.

    Prime Minister Netanyahu has named his military secretary, Roman Gofman, as the new director of the Mossad.

    Gofman will succeed the outgoing David Barnea, whose five-year term expires on June 2.

    Who is Roman Gofman?

    who-is-roman-gofman
    Photo Credit by The Times of Israel

    Gofman was born in Belarus. He immigrated to Israel with his family in 1990, at the age of 14, and settled in Ashdod. During his youth, he attended the ORT Ashdod Naval Officers School.

    He began boxing training after being alienated and violently treated by other classmates. Gofman has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Ashkelon Academic College and a master’s degree in political science and national security from the University of Haifa. During his academic education, he attended the Bnei David Mechina in Eli.

    Career

    In 1995, he enrolled in the IDF’s Armoured Corps and was assigned to the 53rd Battalion, 188th Armoured Brigade. He finished basic training, the tank commander’s course, and the officers’ course. He later served as a tank platoon commander in the 71st Battalion and participated in combat in South Lebanon.

    He eventually became deputy company commander and then company commander of the 71st Battalion, where he oversaw operations in the Gaza Strip and West Bank during the Second Intifada and Operations Defensive Shield.

    He went on to serve as deputy commander of the 71st unit, then as deputy commander of the 460th Brigade’s training unit, and finally as the Ga’ash Formation operations officer.

    In 2010, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and named Head of the Armoured Corps Branch at the National Center for Ground Training (MALI). In 2011, he was named commander of the 75th Battalion, 7th Armoured Brigade. He kept the job till 2013.

    From 2013 to 2015, he was the Operations Officer of the Ga’ash Formation. On August 30, 2015, he was promoted to Colonel and appointed commander of the Etzion Brigade. On August 2, 2017, he was named commander of the 7th Armoured Brigade.

    At the 2018 IDF senior command conference, he advocated for greater use of ground forces. After finishing his service in 2019, he attended the National Security College.

    On October 7, 2023, during the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, he drove from his Ashdod home to Sderot after hearing about infiltrations, joined police volunteers, and confronted Hamas terrorists near the Sha’ar HaNegev crossroads.

    He killed two insurgents and was severely injured in the knee. Following his rehabilitation, he worked for several months as Chief of Staff to the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories.

    He was approved for employment as head of the Shiloh Division in the Directorate of Planning in March 2024, but on April 8, 2024, he was named as the Prime Minister’s Military Secretary.

    In April 2024, he wrote a document suggesting that Israel should establish military authority in the Gaza Strip. The IDF maintained that the document simply reflected his personal views.

    On May 16, 2024, he was promoted to Aluf and appointed Military Secretary to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In this capacity, he participated in Israeli-Russian discussions following the potential fall of the Assad regime.

    He was a significant figure in a clandestine Israeli operation to manage humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip during the 2023-2024 conflict, in which the US corporation SRS (Safe Reach Solutions) and the GHF charity were chosen through a classified process.

    On December 4, 2025, Prime Minister Netanyahu revealed his intention to designate Gofman as the next Director of the Mossad. His appointment was confirmed by the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee on April 12, 2026, and Gofman will succeed outgoing Mossad director David Barnea on June 2.

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