Ronen Bar, chief of Shin Wager, Israel’s home intelligence service, made the assertion in an affidavit to the Supreme Courtroom on Monday. Netanyahu’s transfer final month to dismiss Bar was suspended by the court docket pending an investigation, and the following tussle has provoked massive protests, with crowds accusing the prime minister of endangering democracy.
Netanyahu mentioned he would sack the spy chief attributable to a breakdown in belief, supposedly linked to Hamas’s assault in October 2023 that led to the Gaza struggle.
Nevertheless, Bar acknowledged Netanyahu’s determination was motivated by a collection of occasions between November 2024 and February 2025.
Within the unclassified a part of the court docket submission, Bar famous Netanyahu had advised him “on a couple of event” that he anticipated Shin Wager to take motion in opposition to Israelis concerned in antigovernment demonstrations, “with a specific give attention to monitoring the protests’ monetary backers”.
The Shin Wager head additionally added he had refused to log out on a safety request aimed toward relieving Netanyahu from testifying at an ongoing corruption trial through which he faces prices of bribery, fraud and breach of public belief.
Netanyahu’s bid to oust Bar got here as Shin Wager was investigating monetary ties between the prime minister’s workplace and Qatar, a key mediator within the Gaza struggle. Critics say the firing is tainted by a battle of curiosity and was meant to derail that inquiry.
Shin Wager additionally occurred to be finishing up an inquiry based mostly on suspicion that the federal government had ignored warnings prematurely of Hamas’s assault on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, when the armed Palestinian group killed greater than 1,100 individuals and took about 250 captive.
Greater than 50 of them stay in Gaza. Netanyahu and the hardline Zionist events that assist his authorities have confronted harsh criticism for his or her failure to conform to a ceasefire and the return of the remaining prisoners.
Israel’s onslaught on Gaza has killed greater than 51,000 individuals, in accordance with the enclave’s Ministry of Well being.
Netanyahu’s workplace has mentioned Bar’s affidavit was “filled with lies”, and later responded to a number of of his claims, stating that he had “failed miserably” when Hamas attacked Israel.
It additionally denied that the transfer to sack Bar was aimed toward thwarting the so-called “Qatargate” investigation.
“The dismissal was not supposed to forestall the investigation. Slightly, the investigation was supposed to forestall the dismissal,” it added.
Netanyahu’s transfer to sack Bar was suspended by the Supreme Courtroom after political watchdogs and opposition lawmakers argued the dismissal was illegal.
The bid to unseat the spy chief and the persevering with battle have additional fuelled the protests over the federal government’s failure to safe the captives from Gaza.
Bar has accepted Shin Wager’s failure to cease Hamas’s assault, stating on Monday that he would “quickly announce the date of my resignation”.
