PM appoints Foreign Ministry director general as temporary Civil Service commissioner
Announcing Eden Bar Tal’s appointment, Netanyahu’s office accuses the High Court of ‘acting like the legislature’ due to its ruling that the selection process must be competitive
Jeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Wednesday that he would appoint Foreign Ministry Director General Eden Bar Tal as a temporary Civil Service commissioner for one month, starting immediately, after the High Court of Justice ruled that the government’s method for appointing a new head of the Civil Service was invalid.
Netanyahu’s decision came after the High Court ruled in a two-to-one decision on Monday that the process for appointing a Civil Service commissioner must be carried out by creating a permanent appointments process, which involves a competitive hiring system.
The ruling struck down an August 2024 cabinet resolution to create a formula whereby the prime minister, in an ad hoc process, would nominate one candidate and have their background vetted, but not their qualifications for the position. After legal pressure, the government agreed to have their qualifications vetted too.
The High Court, in its ruling, argued that the system did not include sufficient guardrails to guarantee the independence, impartiality and apolitical nature of the Civil Service commissioner role, and neither would it ensure that the best candidate would be appointed to the job.
Announcing Bar Tal’s temporary appointment as the head of the civil service, the Prime Minister’s Office lambasted the High Court decision and accused the court of “acting like the legislature” and “interpreting the law in total opposition” to its wording and the intention of the Knesset.
While the Law for the Civil Service states that it is not obligatory to issue a public tender for the role of commissioner, the High Court ruled that the appointment process must nevertheless be competitive.
As a result of the High Court’s ruling, the Prime Minister’s Office said that the government would back legislation submitted to the Knesset Tuesday, which stipulates that the position need not be filled through a competitive process.
The question of who will lead the Civil Service has been up in the air since December 2024, when previous commissioner Daniel Hershkowitz’s term ended.
Netanyahu first appointed attorney Roi Kahlon as acting commissioner to replace Hershkowitz, but the move was opposed by Attorney General Baharav-Miara, who argued that Kahlon did not meet the criteria for the position.
After several government watchdog groups petitioned the High Court against Kahlon’s appointment, it ruled that the temporary appointment could stand, but that he could only serve for three months.
Netanyahu’s pick for Kahlon’s successor, Bar Tal, has served as the Foreign Ministry’s director general since November 2024, when he was appointed to the job by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
Prior to that, he served as director general of the Communications Ministry from 2009 until 2013, and from 2020 to 2021 as director general of the Regional Cooperation Ministry.
The Times of Israel Community.