Netanyahu to seek dismissal of head of Israel’s internal security service
Mr Netanyahu said he has had ‘ongoing distrust’ with the director of the Shin Bet internal security service, Ronen Bar.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will bring a vote to the government this week to dismiss the director of the Shin Bet internal security service, Ronen Bar.
Mr Netanyahu said he has had “ongoing distrust” with Mr Bar. The decision comes after an increasingly acrimonious dispute between the men focused largely on who bears responsibility for the October 7 2023, Hamas attack that sparked the war in Gaza.
The Shin Bet is responsible for monitoring Palestinian militant groups.
It recently issued a report accepting responsibility for its failures around the October 7 attack. But it also criticised Mr Netanyahu, saying failed government policies helped create the climate that led to the attack.
The tensions boiled over this weekend when Mr Bar’s predecessor, Nadav Argaman, said he would release sensitive information about Mr Netanyahu if it is found that the prime minister had broken the law. Mr Netanyahu accused Mr Argaman of blackmail and filed a police complaint.
Mr Bar replied in a statement that he planned to continue in the post for the near future and had told that to Mr Netanyahu, citing his “personal obligations” to free the remaining hostages in Gaza, finish sensitive investigations and prepare potential successors.
Mr Netanyahu has resisted calls for an official state commission of inquiry into the October 7 attack and has tried to blame the failures on the army and security agencies.
In recent months, a number of senior security officials, including a former defence minister and army chief, have been sacked or forced to step down. Mr Bar had been one of the few remaining senior security officials since the October 7 attack to remain in office.
Mr Netanyahu said on Sunday his distrust in the head of the Shin Bet had grown over time, and that removing Mr Bar from his position would help Israel “achieve its war goals and prevent the next disaster”.
If Mr Bar is removed, Mr Netanyahu is expected to appoint a loyalist in his place, slowing any momentum for the commission of inquiry.
However, Israel’s attorney general said Mr Netanyahu must clarify the legal basis for his decision before taking any action.
Mr Netanyahu is also angry that the Shin Bet is investigating members of his staff for their dealings with Qatar. The Shin Bet, and Mr Bar, have been closely involved with the hostage negotiations during the war in Gaza.
Mr Netanyahu recently removed Mr Bar from the negotiating team and replaced him with a loyalist, Cabinet minister Ron Dermer.
Israeli media have repeatedly reported on deep policy differences between the negotiators, who have pushed for a hostage deal, and Mr Netanyahu, who continues to threaten to resume the war.
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, a good-governance civil society group, called Mr Netanyahu’s announcement a “declaration of war on the rule of law” and claimed that he does not have the authority to take the step against Mr Bar because of investigations into his own office.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused Mr Netanyahu of attempting to sack Mr Bar over the investigation into connections between the prime minister’s office and Qatar, and said he would appeal against the dismissal, calling the resolution “shameful” and politically motivated.
