Ronen Bar dismissal attempt

Ronen Bar, head of the Israeli domestic intelligence service Shin Bet, was fired by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on 16 March 2025. The firing was approved by the government, then frozen by the Supreme Court of Israel.
Bar was appointed head of the Shin Bet on 13 October 2021, and served in this position prior to the 7 October massacre and during the Iron Swords War.
Sequence of events
On 16 March 2025, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he intended to submit a proposal to the government to terminate Bar's role as head of the Shin Bet, claiming that "at all times, but especially during such an existential war, the Prime Minister must have full confidence in the head of the Shin Bet, but unfortunately, the situation is the opposite - I do not have such confidence... I have an ongoing distrust in the head of the Shin Bet that has grown over time." In response, the Attorney General of Israel informed Netanyahu that he could not arbitrarily dismiss Ronen Bar, "until the investigation into the factual and legal basis for your decision and your ability to address the issue at this time is complete." Ronen Bar also responded to Netanyahu's statement, stating: "The duty of trust owed by the head of the Shin Bet is first and foremost to the citizens of Israel. The Prime Minister's expectation of a personal duty of trust is inappropriate." On 20 March 2025, the government unanimously voted that Bar would end his term no later than 10 April.
Following the government's decision, several entities and opposition parties filed a petition with the Supreme Court against Bar's dismissal.
On 21 March, Supreme Court Judge Gila Canfy-Steinitz froze the dismissal and ordered a hearing in an expanded panel "as soon as possible and no later than April 8, 2025". In response to the petition, the government argued that the issue was not adjudicated.
Affidavit of the head of the Shin Bet
On 21 April , Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar submitted an affidavit to the court, most of it secret and some of it public. In his affidavit, Bar claims that his conclusion from the sequence of events is that the source of the desire to terminate his tenure is not on a professional level but rather in the expectation of personal loyalty on his part to the Prime Minister, and that until November 2024, the Shin Bet had received many compliments from the Prime Minister.
In the public part of the affidavit, Bar made the following claims:
* Netanyahu asked him to give a security opinion that Netanyahu cannot testify at his trial and Bar refused to do so.
* The Prime Minister's Office asked him to act against anti-government protesters and monitor "protest financiers", including Gonen Ben Itzhak.
* Netanyahu demanded personal loyalty, obedience to him and not to the Supreme Court.
* The Shin Bet started an investigation into the connection between which resulted in his dismissal.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu