Shin Bet chief Bar said planning to resign in next few weeks

Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar intends to resign in the next few weeks, Channel 12 reports, citing several conversations Bar has had with associates in recent days.

The report comes after the High Court of Justice last week issued an interim injunction stating that Bar must remain in office until further notice and giving the government and the attorney general until April 20 to reach a compromise over the legal dispute surrounding the unprecedented vote initiated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month to fire him.

However, Channel 12 reports that Bar intends to resign, believing that the ongoing struggles are causing great damage to the Shin Bet.

Bar is set to submit a brief to the court next week, and it is expected that he will detail his intentions and the date of his resignation in the letter, the report says.

Netanyahu moved to fire Bar in March, saying that he had lost faith in him.

The move marked the first time in Israeli history that the government has fired the head of the domestic security agency.

However, opponents of the move charge that Netanyahu had a clear conflict of interest in removing Bar from office, given the Shin Bet’s ongoing investigation into close aides to the premier who are alleged to have conducted PR work for Qatar while working for him.

Critics more broadly accuse Netanyahu of seeking to scapegoat Bar for the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel while shirking responsibility himself.