Despite Shin Bet chief’s departure, AG asks court to rule on core issues behind dismissal
Baharav-Miara tells justices a ruling is critical to upholding independence of security agency against ‘illegitimate pressures’ from politicians
Jeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara told the High Court of Justice on Wednesday that she opposes the government’s request to dismiss petitions against the cabinet’s decision to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, arguing that a final ruling by the High Court was necessary to ensure that the next head of the security service can stand up to “illegitimate pressures.”
Baharav-Miara said the flawed manner in which Bar was fired had “changed reality,” and that without a ruling on the principles of the case, the professional independence of future Shin Bet heads, as well as other senior officeholders, might be undermined.
The court will now have to decide whether or not to issue a substantive ruling on the key concerns raised by the petitions or dismiss them, since Bar has announced he is resigning.
Bar was fired by the government on March 21 despite the attorney general warning the government that it first needed to explain the substantive reasons behind its decision, and that it needed to consult a statutory advisory committee for removing him from office, both of which it failed to do.
The High Court froze the decision to fire Bar in order to hear petitions filed to the court asking it to annul his dismissal, on the grounds that the decision was made due to the political and personal expediencies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
But Bar announced last month he would resign as Shin Bet head by June 15, leading the government to annul its decision to fire him and to then request that the petitions be removed from the court’s docket.
Organizations that petitioned the court against Bar’s dismissal lambasted the government’s decision to annul the original dismissal, alleging the step was taken to avoid a substantive ruling by the court on what they insist was the unlawful manner in which he was fired.
In its response to the government’s request on Wednesday, the Attorney General’s Office insisted that a ruling on the substantive concerns raised by the petitions was “extremely important” so as to make clear what should be “the normative framework” when firing the Shin Bet chief.
The attorney general’s response pointed out that the government had failed to explain its cause for firing Bar before making the decision, and had failed to bring the issue to the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee for its recommendation. It noted that the decision was taken before the question of whether Netanyahu had a conflict of interest in firing Bar — due to Shin Bet investigations into his close aides — had been answered.
This “altered reality,” the attorney general argued, meant that the cabinet resolution annulling the decision to fire Bar “does not turn the wheel backward,” because of the highly problematic flaws in that decision-making process which must now be addressed by the court.
Failing to issue a decision on the petitions would therefore “weaken the guarantees” required for senior public officials, including the Shin Bet chief, “to exercise independent judgment” and “withstand pressure from the political echelon, as required by law.”
This could be interpreted as giving a green light for dismissing such senior officials “in the event that the head of a service refuses the demand of the political echelon to act contrary to his professional judgment,” the Attorney General’s Office continued.
“Issuing a ruling on the fundamental issues… is essential in order to enable those holding senior positions in the security and public service in general… to stand firm in fulfilling their duties… without fear, and not to be concerned that if they present a professional position or make a decision that does not please the political echelon… this will lead to their dismissal,” the Attorney General’s Office concluded.
The Times of Israel Community.