Interior minister: ‘No question’ government must respect High Court ruling

Interior Minister Moshe Arbel says he believes the government must respect a potential High Court ruling that strikes down its decision to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar

Arbel remains the only minister to explicitly say the government should follow such a ruling, while several other cabinet members and lawmakers have said otherwise.

“The decision that is made will be respected by the State of Israel and the government of Israel. There is no question,” he tells a Yedioth Aharanoth convention.

“There is great importance to the faith the public has in law enforcement officials. There is great importance to the system itself. We won’t crush these systems. Not the Shin Bet, not the Attorney General’s Office,” he says.

Asked if he believes that Israel has a “deep state,” Arbel says he believes that such a perspective is wrong.

“Smearing public officials with such a title is wrong. Along with this statement that there is no deep state in the State of Israel, there are times when representatives of these authorities are mistaken and must stand by their mistakes,” he adds.