Tal Russo | |
|---|---|
טַל רוּסוֹ | |
 Russo in Southern Israel, August 2011 | |
| Faction represented in theKnesset | |
| 2019 | Israeli Labor Party |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1959 (age 65–66) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Israel |
| Branch/service | Southern Command |
| Years of service | 1978–2014 |
| Rank | Aluf |
Tal Russo (Hebrew:טַל רוּסוֹ; born 1959) is a general of theIsrael Defense Forces, serving in the reserves. He heads the IDF'sDepth Corps. He also served as an MK for the Labor Party.
Russo was born inkibbutzHulata,Israel. He earned a BA inpolitical science from theUniversity of Haifa and an MBA fromTel Aviv University.[1]
He was drafted into the IDF in 1978.[1] He served with theIsraeli Air Force special forces unitShaldag until discharged in 1981,[2] but returned in 1982 to command a squad during the1982 Lebanon War. That same year he received his officer's ranks, and then continued to advance up thechain of command, spending much of his early career in the special forces.[1]
During the2006 Lebanon War Russo served as the Assistant of the Head of theOperations Directorate in special missions. In October 2006 Chief of StaffDan Halutz recommended Russo to replace Operations Directorate headGadi Eizenkot, who had been promoted to head ofNorthern Command.[3] Russo's promotion was subsequently approved by Defense MinisterAmir Peretz.
In October 2010, Russo was appointed as commander of theSouthern Command. He oversawOperation Pillar of Defense,[4] before retiring in April 2013.
Russo joined theIsraeli Labor Party and was second on the party'selectoral list in theApril 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 joinedGadi Eisenkot's party,Yashar, in 2025.[8]
Heads ofSouthern Command | ||
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