[2] Rothberg commanded the Shayetet 13 special forces unit from 2001 to 2004[3] and presided over some of its most notable operations, such as the raid on the Karin A arms smuggling ship in January 2002.

[4] He later served as the Chief of Naval Intelligence during the Second Lebanon War and was reprimanded by then-Chief of Staff Dan Halutz for the 14 July 2006 attack on the Israeli corvette INS Hanit.

An Iranian-supplied C-802 anti-ship missile fired by Hezbollah hit the warship, whose crew was apparently unaware that the Lebanese group possessed such weapons.

[5] On 4 August 2011, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak approved his appointment as the next head of the Israel Navy,[3][4][5][6] after being nominated by IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz.

Shortly before April Fool's Day, Rothberg ordered senior commanders to prepare for a complex, 10-day exercise in Italy with the US and Italian navies.