Shin Bet chief said to refuse PM Netanyahu’s demand to resign after clash over Oct 7 failures

During an “extremely tense” meeting last week, Shin Bet director Ronen Bar refused a demand by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he resign his post, Channel 12 News reported.

Shin Bet, or Israel's Security Agency (ISA), handles the nation's internal security affairs and is one of the three organizations in Israel's intelligence operations, alongside Aman (military intelligence) and Mossad (foreign intelligence).

Netanyahu reportedly urged Bar to resign using “harsh” language and bringing up the failures of the Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence service, to warn about Hamas’s intentions before the Oct. 7 invasion and massacre.

“We waited for the investigations – now it’s time to put down the keys,” Netanyahu was cited by Channel 12. However, Bar is said to refuse and insists that if he wants him gone, the Prime Minister should fire him.

However, the opposition by embattled Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara threatens to prevent this.

Deputy Attorney General Gil Limon declared that such a decision, which requires a hearing, would need to be grounded in “a solid and comprehensive factual basis, free of external considerations and consistent with legal and administrative principles.”

In a letter, Limon stressed that “under the current circumstances, if such a process is to be considered, it must undergo prior review by the Attorney General to ensure it adheres to both procedural and substantive guarantees before proceeding.”

Netanyahu’s push for Bar to resign was reportedly triggered by the publication of the Shin Bet's October 7 internal report, and the resignation of IDF Chief Herzi Halevi.

After the report was published, Netanyahu’s office said that Bar “completely failed in everything related to the organization’s handling of Hamas, especially during the events of October 7. Bar misread the intelligence landscape and was trapped in a false perception. During routine intelligence assessments, including just days before the massacre, Shin Bet’s main thesis was that Hamas wanted to maintain quiet and avoid escalation.”

However, relations between Bar and Netanyahu have been tense for some time, starting even before October 7.

During the Gaza War, Bar himself has been openly critical of Netanyahu during the repeated failure to come to a hostage-ceasefire agreement. In return, Netanyahu has openly criticized Bar, although initially refraining from mentioning him by name. 

In the clash over Bar’s resignation, Bar is said to seek to ensure that the agency continues to function as a state institution without becoming subject to political demands.

However, the position that state institutions should function independently, and indeed, contrary to, the government’s directives, is exactly what the coalition has sought to correct in numerous initiatives, including the judicial reforms.

The Prime Minister's Office responded to the Channel 12 News report: “The government appoints the Shin Bet chief, not the sitting Shin Bet chief. This has always been the practice – as is customary in a democratic state.”

The week before, Channel 12 had quoted from a private conversation between Bar and high-ranking Shin Bet officials. Bar is said to have presented conditions for his resignation, including the right to appoint two deputies, with the implication being that one of them would succeed him.

The Shin Bet stated in response: “The Shin Bet chief never said that he would appoint his successor. For decades, it has been accepted that the deputy head of the service is a candidate for the position of chief, subject to the Prime Minister's decision.”

In a recent cabinet meeting over the issue of appointing a state commission of inquiry, reportedly Netanyahu refused to allow Bar into the meeting, and would not allow a written statement from Bar advocating for a state commission, which was to be read to the cabinet.

When asked by the attorney general why he wouldn’t allow Bar’s opinion to be shared, Netanyahu reportedly responded, saying, “He is a bureaucrat. What has he got to do with the decision to set up an inquiry commission?” 

Haaretz also cited Bar as telling subordinates that he sees two missions left to complete in his post: The return of the hostages, and ensuring a state commission of inquiry into the war is formed.