Kadima's Avi Dichter submits letter of resignation
MK will leave his party to replace Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilna’i at request of PM, Barak; says this is how he can best serve Israel.
By JPOST.COM STAFF, GIL STERN STERN HOFFMANAvi Dichter 311 AJ(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
Kadima MK Avi Dichter submitted his letter of resignation to Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday morning.The resignation will take effect by Thursday's Knesset meeting.Dichter decided Monday overnight to leave the Knesset and join the cabinet at the request of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak.Dichter will replace outgoing Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilna’i, who will leave next week for Beijing to be Israel’s next ambassador to China.A he handed in his official resignation, Dichter also explained the move in a post on his Facebook page, stating that his decision to accept the role of Home Front Defense Minister was a decision to serve the country in the best way that he could."After a long period of deliberation, that I did not hide from anyone... I made a decision last night to grant Netanyahu and Barak's request and be appointed as Home Front Defense Minister," he wrote."Partisan and personal considerations were pushed aside, and as in the past 42 years since joining the IDF, I chose to serve the country as best as I can. At this time, I believe that I can do this best in the role of Home Front Defense Minster," he continued."I promise all those who supported me and continue to support me, and there are many: your support has allowed me to serve the country until today and will allow me to continue to serve it," Dichter stated.
![Avi Dichter 311 AJ (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])](https://images.jpost.com/image/upload/q_auto/c_fill,g_faces:center,h_537,w_822/162890 "Avi Dichter 311 AJ")