Tal Russo

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Tal Russo
טַל רוּסוֹ
Russo in Southern Israel, August 2011
Faction represented in the Knesset
2019Israeli Labor Party
Personal details
Born1959 (age 65–66)
Hulata, Israel
Military service
AllegianceIsrael Israel
Branch/serviceSouthern Command
Years of service1978–2014
RankAluf

Tal Russo (Hebrew: טַל רוּסוֹ; born 1959) is a general of the Israel Defense Forces, serving in the reserves. He heads the IDF's Depth Corps. He also served as an MK for the Labor Party.

Early life and education

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Russo was born in kibbutz Hulata, Israel. He earned a BA in political science from the University of Haifa and an MBA from Tel Aviv University.[1]

Military career

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He was drafted into the IDF in 1978.[1] He served with the Israeli Air Force special forces unit Shaldag until discharged in 1981,[2] but returned in 1982 to command a squad during the 1982 Lebanon War. That same year he received his officer's ranks, and then continued to advance up the chain of command, spending much of his early career in the special forces.[1]

During the 2006 Lebanon War Russo served as the Assistant of the Head of the Operations Directorate in special missions. In October 2006 Chief of Staff Dan Halutz recommended Russo to replace Operations Directorate head Gadi Eizenkot, who had been promoted to head of Northern Command.[3] Russo's promotion was subsequently approved by Defense Minister Amir Peretz.

In October 2010, Russo was appointed as commander of the Southern Command. He oversaw Operation Pillar of Defense,[4] before retiring in April 2013.

Political career

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Russo joined the Israeli Labor Party was second on the party's electoral list in the April 2019 Israeli legislative election.[5] Russo was elected to the Knesset[6] though he resigned four months into his term and did not run for re-election.[7]

He joined Gadi Eisenkot's party, Yashar, in 2025.[8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "IDF Profile". Archived from the original on 13 May 2008.
  2. ^ Perl Finkel, Gal (7 March 2019). "When good commander doesn't equal a good politician". The Jerusalem Post.
  3. ^ Harel, Amos (4 October 2006). "Tal Russo promoted to major general, made IDF's chief of operations". Haaretz.
  4. ^ "GOC Southern Command: Proud to command Givati Brigade". IDF Spokesperson. 21 February 2013.
  5. ^ Hacohen, Hagay (20 February 2019). "Avi Gabbay presents his number two: Ex-IDF General Tal Russo". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  6. ^ "Here's the Full List of Israeli Lawmakers – and Only a Quarter Are Women". Haaretz. 8 April 2019. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  7. ^ Newman, Marissa (10 June 2019). "After 4-month stint, Labor's No. 2 Tal Russo quits politics". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  8. ^ Azulay, Moran (16 September 2025). "Former IDF chief Eisenkot launches new party 'Yashar' with prominent Israeli figures". ynet. Retrieved 24 September 2025.