Netanyahu claims Oct. 7 onslaught could have been avoided had Bar woken him up beforehand

Calling it “full of lies,” the Prime Minister’s Office releases a detailed attack on Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar’s affidavit to the High Court of Justice earlier today.

The PMO blames Bar for not waking up the prime minister or the defense minister before dawn on October 7, 2023. “If he had done so, the massacre would have been avoided,” says the PMO, adding that Bar only called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military secretary at 6:13 a.m., 3 hours after Bar allegedly had intelligence about the impending attack.

“Bar confirms the determination of all government ministers that he failed miserably on October 7,” says Netanyahu’s office. “This reason alone requires his termination.”

Bar also said two days before the Hamas attack that the “renewal of understandings between Israel and Hamas based on the principle of quiet in exchange for concessions reveals the potential for preserving stability in the Gaza Strip.”

Bar told the High Court today that he had been fired due to expectations from Netanyahu that he be loyal to the premier, and said it was made clear to him that he needed to obey Netanyahu and not the Supreme Court in the event of a constitutional crisis.

Netanyahu’s office also notes that Bar said in his affidavit that the premier announced in November 2024 that he wanted to fire him. “This contradicts the claim of the attorney general that Bar’s dismissal came in February because of the opening of the investigation into the Qatar affair. The firing was not meant to prevent the investigation, but rather the investigation was meant to prevent the firing.”

The Shin Bet is investigating two of Netanyahu’s aides on suspicion of being on Qatar’s payroll while working for the prime minister.

The PMO also denies that Netanyahu tried to postpone his corruption trial, as Bar claims. The statement further argues that Bar has failed to prevent incitement and occasional violence directed at Netanyahu.