Netanyahu informs Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar gov't to vote on his dismissal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Ronen Bar, the head of the Shin Bet security agency, that he will bring a vote before his government to dismiss him next week.

Netanyahu gave a public address to speak about the move, noting that the existential war Israel is currently engaged in "on seven fronts" requires him to have "full confidence in the head of the Shin Bet."

"Unfortunately," he said, "the situation is the opposite – I do not have such confidence. I have ongoing distrust in the head of the Shin Bet. A distrust that has grown over time. Due to this ongoing distrust, I have decided this week to bring to the government a proposal for a resolution to terminate the position of the head of the Shin Bet."

Despite this, Netanyahu stressed his "appreciation for the women and men of the Shin Bet. They do dedicated and important work for the security of all of us."

The move is "necessary" he said, for the rehabilitation of the internal security agency after the defense failures during the Gazan onslaught October 7, 2023, as well as "preventing the next disaster."

Bar responds

Bar responded by saying he has taken responsibility for the Shin Bet's part in the October 7 failure, while Netanyahu has not. While he intends to resign, he said, "I must fulfill my personal and service obligations to return the hostages, complete a number of sensitive investigations, and optimally prepare two candidates to replace me, for the Prime Minister's selection - as required by the Shin Bet's state position and the extreme sensitivity of the Shin Bet, by virtue of its designation and by virtue of the law that grants it extensive and extremely sensitive powers."

Until this is done, Bar said he does not intend to step down. He stressed "the need to interrogate all the parties, including the government's policy and the Prime Minister, and not just the IDF and Shin Bet, which investigated themselves thoroughly, in the interest of public security. If I do not insist on this, with all the personal costs I will pay, I will be violating the security of the state in my role."

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said this was "better late than never," as "replacing the head of the Shin Bet is a necessary step."

Netanyahu immediately came under fire from opposition leaders, with Democrats head Yair Golan saying his attempt to fire Bar amounts to a declaration of "war against the State of Israel."

Blue and White leader Benny Gantz said that "the firing of the Shin Bet head is a direct attack against the state's security and the dismantling of unity in Israeli society for political and personal reasons."

Opposition leader Yair Lapid said there was only one reason to fire Bar, and that was "the 'Qatar-gate' investigation." This refers to an ongoing probe currently under gag order, which is looking into possible links between Qatar and members of Netanyahu's staff.