Cabinet OKs new PMO communications director

Unanimous appointment of Yoaz Hendel, strategic and military affairs columnist and commentator, to head National Information Directorate.

By HERB KEINON
The cabinet on Sunday approved the appointment of a new overall communications director for the Prime Minister’s Office, who quickly announced the addition of another spokesman.
The cabinet unanimously appointed Yoaz Hendel, a strategic and military affairs columnist and commentator, to head the National Information Directorate. He is replacing Gidi Schmerling, and is expected to deal with overall communications strategy.
The Prime Minister’s Office put out a statement saying that Hendel, who began work on Sunday, will change the structure of the National Information Directorate, and has appointed Liran Dan to head its media and spokesman’s unit.
Dan, according to the statement, will be responsible for the Prime Minister’s spokespersons, as well as the Internet and social media. Inside the Prime Minister’s Office there are currently separate spokesmen for the Hebrew, English, Arabic and Russian-language media.
Dan has served over the past four years as Channel 2 News’ deputy managing director. He established its interactive unit and was the chief editor of its website. From 2004-2007, he edited Channel 2’s main news program after having previously developed its weekend news format.
Government sources said the boundaries’ of every persons’ positions were not yet clearly defined.
Hendel, a columnist for Yediot Aharonot, a military commentator for Makor Rishon and a talk show host on a program dealing with security affairs on Army Radio, will be Netanyahu’s fourth media adviser since he took office in 2009. A military historian and lecturer at Bar-Ilan University and a research fellow at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Hendel recently wrote a book with The Jerusalem Post’s Yaakov Katz titled: Israel vs. Iran: The Shadow War.