Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed in a Saturday speech that the decision to fire the country’s domestic security chief Ronen Bar was made before the announcement that Bar was investigating the prime ministry for alleged ties to the Qatari government.
Netanyahu said that he had decided to fire Bar, the director of Shin Bet, after the agency’s report on the 7 October 2023 attack, rather than after it opened its investigation.
“Ronen Bar will not remain head of the Shin Bet. There will not be a civil war, and Israel will remain a democratic state,” said Netanyahu.
Shin Bet has said that it began its investigation into connections between officials in the prime minister’s office and the Qatari government in early February, before the release of the 7 October report. The investigation is looking into allegations that some members of the prime minister’s office, as well as other government agencies, took money to promote the interests of Qatar.
The decision to fire Bar has brought tens of thousands of Israelis to the streets, protesting against what they have said is an attack on the country’s democracy. Demonstrations have also been egged on by the government’s resumptions of airstrikes in the Gaza Strip this week, killing more than 590 people, including 200 children, and upending a two-month truce.
Israel’s supreme court suspended Netanyahu’s decision to fire the domestic intelligence head, which will remain in place until a hearing is held, by 8 April at the latest. The country’s attorney general also said the prime minister cannot appoint a new Shin Bet director.
Netanyahu, in a post on X, said it was his right to fire and appoint agency heads.
“There will be no civil war! The state of Israel is a state of law, and according to the law, the government of Israel decides who will be the head of the Shin Bet,” Netanyahu said. He doubled down in his speech on Saturday, claiming that the government can dismiss the heads of security agencies.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid called for a country-wide strike if Netanyahu does not abide by the high court’s decision, claiming doing so would cause the government to be “outside of the law”.
“If that happens, the entire country should stop,” Lapid said to thousands of protesters in Tel Aviv.
The opposition leader’s party condemned the sacking of the Shin Bet head, which it described as being motivated by a conflict of interest.
Netanyahu is on trial in three separate corruption cases, which include charges of fraud, bribery, and breach of trust. Netanyahu was set to testify in his corruption trial on Tuesday, but the court cancelled the hearing after the Israeli military resumed its military operations in Gaza on the same day.
Netanyahu has also sought the dismissal of the country’s attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara, a longtime critic of his. The government is set to meet to begin dismissal procedures against her on Sunday.
Demonstrators also protested against Israel’s renewed military operation in Gaza, demanding instead a deal to release the remaining hostages in Gaza. The ceasefire agreement had previously facilitated a hostage swap for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons, as well as the entry of sorely needed aid into Gaza.
