Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has terminated the head of the country’s security service, Ronen Bar, citing a failure to predict the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. The Israeli cabinet met on Thursday to formally approve Bar’s dismissal, which comes after he had served as the chief of Shin Bet since October 2021 under a five-year term.
Netanyahu announced his intention to fire Bar in a video statement on Sunday, highlighting an “ongoing distrust” that has developed between them over time.
The decision has sparked outrage and intensified anti-government protests in Jerusalem, where thousands of Israelis joined demonstrators opposing the renewed military action in Gaza. Since Tuesday, Israel has launched a significant wave of strikes on what it claims are Hamas targets in the Palestinian territory, effectively ending a fragile truce that had lasted for two months.
The Shin Bet is Israel’s domestic intelligence agency, which is crucial to the country’s security operations, and its operations remain closely guarded state secrets.
In response to his dismissal, Bar described the move as politically driven. Israel’s Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, a vocal critic of Netanyahu and currently facing her own dismissal proceedings, contended that Bar could not be fired until the legality of the action was evaluated.
In a letter to his cabinet members prior to the meeting, Netanyahu pointed to a “persistent loss of professional and personal trust” between himself and Bar, proposing that Bar’s term end on April 20.
The letter elaborated on how this erosion of professional trust has developed during the ongoing conflict, particularly following the operational failure of the October 7 attacks, which led to the escalation of the Israel-Gaza war.
The Hamas attacks resulted in approximately 1,200 Israeli fatalities and 251 hostages. In retaliation, Israel launched a large-scale military campaign, which the Hamas-run health ministry reports has claimed over 48,500 Palestinian lives.
Credit: BBC News
