Israeli Supreme Court freezes Netanyahu government’s dismissal of head of internal security agency

By Eugenia Yosef, Lauren Izso, Tim Lister and Mohammed Tawfeeq, CNN

(CNN) — Israel’s Supreme Court has frozen the government’s dismissal of Ronen Bar, head of the country’s internal security service Shin Bet, sparking anger from senior officials including the prime minister.

Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that Israel “is a state of law and according to the law, the Israeli government decides who will be the head of the Shin Bet.”

Other ministers immediately condemned the decision. Minister of Communications Shlomo Kari said the court had “no legal authority to interfere in this. That is the government’s authority and its alone. Your order is void.”

And far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich posted on X: “High Court judges will not conduct the war or determine its commanders. Period.”

In its ruling, the court said, “Petitions shall be scheduled for a hearing before the panel (of judges) as soon as possible and no later than April 8.” It added that in the meantime that it was issuing an order “suspending the effect of the decision.”

The vote to dismiss Bar in the early hours of Friday local time was appealed just hours later by Israel’s Supreme Court.

“The government has now unanimously approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to terminate the term of Shin Bet head Ronen Bar,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement Friday.

“Ronen Bar will end his role as Shin Bet head on April 10, 2025, or when a permanent Shin Bet head is appointed – whichever comes first,” it added.

That vote came after Netanyahu met with Bar last week and informed him that he would propose his removal.

In a video statement released on Sunday, Netanyahu said his “ongoing distrust” of Bar had led to the move. “At all times, but especially in such an existential war, the prime minister must have full confidence in the head of the Shin Bet,” Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu added that removing Bar would be necessary for achieving Israel’s war goals in Gaza and “preventing the next disaster.” The prime minister has frequently criticized the agency, placing blame on its leaders for the security lapses that led to the Hamas October 7, 2023, attacks that killed more than 1,200 people.

Shin Bet, which is in charge of monitoring domestic threats to Israel, conducted an internal investigation that determined that the agency had “failed in its mission” to prevent the attacks. But it also blamed policies enacted by Netanyahu’s government as contributing factors, such as politicians’ visits to the Al Aqsa compound in Jerusalem, “the treatment of prisoners, and the perception that Israeli society has been weakened due to the damage to social cohesion.”

An Israeli official told CNN on Thursday that the government had “lost all confidence in Ronen Bar, who continues to cling to his seat while cynically using the families of the hostages and politically improperly using his position to fabricate futile, unfounded investigations.”

Shin Bet is reported to have recently opened an investigation into allegations that members of Netanyahu’s office inappropriately lobbied on behalf of Qatar – something his office denies.

On Wednesday, the office of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara sent a letter to Netanyahu saying that the government could not fire Bar without the approval of a special committee.

Netanyahu responded with a letter on Thursday, saying Baharav-Miara was “exceeding her authority” and “giving legal opinions and instructions to the government in violation of Supreme Court rulings.”

Bar released a statement just hours before his dismissal saying the vote by Netanyahu’s cabinet “was hastily convened, contrary to every basic legal rule dealing with the right to be heard and contrary to the position of the legal adviser to the government.”

Netanyahu has previously removed both Bar and the head of the Mossad intelligence service, David Barnea, from the negotiating team engaging in indirect talks with Hamas regarding the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal.

Opposition politicians have criticized Netanyahu’s targeting of Bar, claiming it is politically motivated.

“The dismissal of the head of the service at this time, at the initiative of the prime minister, sends a message to all those involved, a message that may jeopardize the optimal outcome of the investigation. This is a direct danger to the security of the state of Israel,” Bar said in his statement Thursday.

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