Israeli government dismisses head of domestic intelligence service
Israel's government has decided on the highly controversial dismissal of the head of the domestic intelligence service, Ronen Bar. The Cabinet unanimously backed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to remove Bar from office, Netanyahu's office said. The Times of Israel reported in the early hours of Friday that the Cabinet meeting lasted some three-and-a-half hours. Netanyahu had announced plans to fire Bar on Sunday evening, triggering mass protests. According to the Israeli media, it is t
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Israel's government has decided on the highly controversial dismissal of the head of the domestic intelligence service, Ronen Bar.
The Cabinet unanimously backed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to remove Bar from office, Netanyahu's office said. The Times of Israel reported in the early hours of Friday that the Cabinet meeting lasted some three-and-a-half hours.
Netanyahu had announced plans to fire Bar on Sunday evening, triggering mass protests. According to the Israeli media, it is the first time in Israel's history that a government has dismissed the head of the Shin Bet.
Netanyahu cited a "lack of trust" in Bar as the reason for his dismissal.
Relations between the two have been strained. Netanyahu had removed Bar from the Israeli negotiating team conducting the indirect talks with the Palestinian militant organization Hamas over the war in Gaza.
In an investigation by Shin Bet into the mistakes that had made the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, possible, Netanyahu's policies had come in for criticism.
In addition, Shin Bet is investigating alleged illegal ties between Netanyahu's associates and Qatar.
Qatar is one of the negotiators in the talks with Hamas, and is also a supporter of the group.
Critics in Israel fear that Netanyahu could replace Bar with a successor who is loyal to him and will shut down the investigation.
Bar will leave his post on April 10, unless a successor is appointed before then, Netanyahu's office said.
There had been mass protests against Bar's dismissal. On the night of the decision, thousands demonstrated again despite heavy rain.