Cabinet approves ex-UK envoy Hotovely to lead National Public Diplomacy Directorate

Former envoy will fill diplomacy position that has been vacant for two years; ministers also okay Doron Cohen as civil service commissioner

The cabinet unanimously approved on Sunday the appointment of former ambassador to the UK Tzipi Hotovely as the head of the National Public Diplomacy Directorate in the Prime Minister’s Office, filling a position that has been vacant for some two years.

In another senior appointment move, the cabinet also approved the appointment of Doron Cohen as Civil Service Commissioner.

They both take office on May 5.

“In her various roles, Hotovely worked, among other things, to promote the image of the State of Israel, was interviewed extensively by international media outlets around the world, and fought in the international public relations arena during the war,” the PMO said.

The last head of the directorate, Moshik Aviv, resigned in May 2024 and was not replaced, even as Israel fought wars on several fronts and faced severe and mounting global criticism among both allies and adversaries.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the appointments, calling them “outstanding.”

“Wishing you all the greatest success for the benefit of all Israeli citizens!” he wrote on his official X account. He noted as well that that the cabinet also approved Col. (Res.) Nati Cohen as head of the National Digital Agency, which focuses on bringing the public arena into the digital age.

Hotovely, a member of Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party and former deputy foreign minister, has drawn backlash for her remarks over the years, including for saying in 2017 that American Jews “never send their children to fight for their country,” a statement for which she later apologized.

Hotovely served as Israel’s ambassador in London from 2020 to 2025. Netanyahu’s chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman, is slated to take over the UK posting but has been prevented from doing so because he is under investigation in connection with a probe into a classified document leak.

He is suspected of having altered the stated time at which Netanyahu first received an update on the October 7, 2023, Hamas invasion via phone call from his military secretary at the time, Maj. Gen. Avi Gil, allegedly changing it from 6:40 a.m. to 6:29 a.m.

The restrictive conditions on Braverman were lifted last month, allowing him to soon take up the ambassador’s post.

Cohen will begin his six-year tenure on next month, or after any conflict of interest procedures are completed, the PMO said.

Cohen’s appointment had Netanyahu’s backing.

According to Hebrew media reports, Michal Halperin, a member of the committee that selected Cohen, opposed his appointment, noting the lack of women in senior positions in Israel.

The Ynet news site said Cohen’s appointment was also opposed by some within Netanyahu’s Likud party as he was considered to be close to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party.

Cohen previously served as director general of the Finance Ministry, head of the Government Companies Authority, and chair of the board of directors at Cellcom.

The Civil Service commissioner oversees all the civil servants in the Civil Service, which runs public services in the country, and has authority over senior appointments, promotions, and dismissals in the Civil Service, the allocation of tasks within its departments, and disciplinary processes.

Cohen’s appointment came after a long-running storm over the replacement of his predecessor, Daniel Hershkowitz.