Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar announces he will step down from his role on June 15

Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar announced Monday that he will step down from his position on June 15, citing personal responsibility for the agency’s failure to prevent the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack.

At Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recommendation, the cabinet last month voted unanimously to dismiss Bar, prompting an ongoing legal battle, with petitions against the dismissal currently being considered by the High Court of Justice.

The prime minister has said he lost trust in Bar, and castigated him over the October 7 failures, but Bar contested his dismissal as illegitimate, and argued that Netanyahu was seeking to oust him for personal and political reasons.

Speaking at a memorial event for fallen Shin Bet personnel in advance of Memorial Day — which begins Tuesday at sundown — Bar said that after “years [operating] on many fronts, one night, on the southern front, the heavens fell.” On October 7, “all the systems collapsed and the Shin Bet, too, failed in providing an early warning.”

“As the head of the organization, I took responsibility for this — and now, on this special evening, symbolizing remembrance, bravery, and sacrifice, I have chosen to announce the fulfillment of that responsibility and my decision to end my tenure as head of the Shin Bet,” he said.

“In light of the magnitude” of the October 7 event, Bar continued, “all of us — those who chose public service and the defense of state security as our life mission, and who failed to provide a protective covering that day — must all bow our heads humbly before the murdered, the fallen, the wounded, the abducted and their families, and act accordingly. All of us.”

In comments that could also be seen as directed at Netanyahu — who has largely sought to shift the blame for October 7 and avoid the establishment of a state commission of inquiry with broad powers — Bar went on: “The fulfillment of responsibility in practice is an inseparable part of personal example and the legacy of our leaders, and we have no legitimacy to lead without it.”

Bar stressed that the Shin Bet had not dismissed the danger posed by Hamas: “Despite efforts to depict a different reality, there was no complacency in the Shin Bet. To the contrary, there was a recognition of the Hamas threat,” and relentless efforts to tackle it — “both in the years before the attack and on the [previous] night and morning of October 7. And yet we failed… The truth, and what needs to be corrected, must be established only within the framework of a state commission of inquiry,” he said.

He noted that, from 6.30 on the morning of October 7, the Shin Bet, together with the IDF and the rest of the defense establishment, had taken the war to Hamas and, from that day until this one, had “turned the tables” on all the war fronts. He said that the Shin Bet had vowed to settle the score with all those who were involved in the invasion and massacre. “One by one, in this land and overseas, we got to those who planned the slaughter, by all means possible. This is our Munich, and the Shin Bet will continue to act in this way against those [architects of the massacre] who remain,” he said in reference to the 1972 Munich Olympics murders of Israeli athletes.”

He also called for the return of all the remaining hostages, highlighting the crucial imperative for Israel to honor its responsibility to bring home its citizens from captivity, and pleading for the “completion of this mission.”

In an affidavit last week, Bar claimed that Netanyahu had demanded that the security chief be loyal to the prime minister over the courts, said Netanyahu sought to misuse the Shin Bet’s powers, and warned that the future independence and integrity of the service are imperiled. Netanyahu issued an affidavit countering those claims on Sunday.

Bar referred to some of those concerns in his speech, saying of the Shin Bet: “This is an organization whose proper functioning is of priceless importance to the security of the country and to Israeli democracy.

“Over the past month, I fought for this, and this week, all the necessary groundwork was laid before the High Court of Justice, and I hope that its verdict will ensure that the Shin Bet remains so — for the long term and without fear,” he said.

He specified that the agency must be provided with “institutional protections that will allow every Shin Bet chief to fulfill their role, subject to government policy and for the public good, independently and free of pressure. And thus, and this is of the utmost importance, to draw the clear line that distinguishes between trust and loyalty.”

Bar said that the ongoing proceedings “are not about my personal case but about the independence of future Shin Bet chiefs,” stressing that he is willing to continue to cooperate with the High Court on the matter moving forward.

Bar said he believes that “leadership is tested more in the aftermath of failure than success” and requires “setting a personal example, at the heart of which is taking responsibility.”

Therefore, he concluded, “after 35 years of service,” he will step down on June 15, in order to allow for an orderly process of appointing a successor and guiding them during the handover period.

How will this affect the legal battle?

In light of Bar’s announcement, the High Court of Justice will need to decide how to proceed with the petitions before it, which asked that it annul the government’s decision to fire the Shin Bet chief.

The court will probably start by asking both the petitioners and the government for their position.

The government will likely request that the interim order freezing Bar’s dismissal be rescinded, citing the importance to Israeli security of having a Shin Bet chief who can work with the government.

The petitioners may either ask that the court nevertheless rule on the merits of the case, or possibly request that the court instruct Netanyahu not to be involved in the appointment of a new Shin Bet head, due to a conflict of interest over the criminal investigations the agency is conducting into the prime minister’s close aides.

It seems unlikely that the court will issue a final ruling on the merits of the case, however, since the practical issue of Bar’s tenure as Shin Bet chief is now moot. The petitioners alleged that procedural flaws in the decision to fire Bar, and what they said were political considerations tainting the decision, rendered it unlawful.

But the court will also be disinclined to rescind its interim order and allow the government to fire Bar, given the concern the judges expressed over the procedural flaws in the decision to remove him and a reticence to be seen as affirming the government’s decision.

Even if the court decides to dismiss the petitions, it could still make principled statements in its decision about the obligation for the government to use only professional considerations when hiring a Shin Bet chief, and indeed when firing one.

Who might succeed Bar?

Shortly after the government’s vote to fire Bar, Netanyahu briefly tapped Vice Adm. (res.) Eli Sharvit, a former Navy chief, to lead the Shin Bet, but backtracked 24 hours later, given the political pressure surrounding Sharvit’s public comments against the policies of Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump.

Netanyahu said he had made the decision to tap Sharvit after interviewing “seven worthy candidates.”

He was reported to have interviewed two former deputy Shin Bet heads — one identified only by his Hebrew initial “Mem,” and the other being Yair (Rolly) Sagi — as well as Shalom Ben Hanan, a former top Shin Bet official.

“Mem” is the most recent former deputy chief of the internal security agency. Netanyahu previously appointed him as a member of Israel’s hostage negotiation team after Bar was removed ahead of his dismissal.

“Mem” has also served in several other senior roles in the agency and worked as a field coordinator, involved in recruiting agents and other sources.

Sagi, previously identified by the Hebrew initial “Resh,” was deputy Shin Bet head when Bar was selected as chief of the agency.

Ben Hanan served for some 27 years in various roles within the organization, including as head of the Israel and Foreign Affairs Division and the training directorate. He is currently a senior researcher at Reichman University’s Institute for Counter-Terrorism.

Eyal Tsir Cohen, a former division head in the Mossad and currently a researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies, was another leading candidate.

After making and then withdrawing Sharvit’s appointment, Netanyahu said that the deputy head of the security agency — identified only by his first initial “Shin” — would serve as its acting head.

Opposition lawmakers: ‘Netanyahu, your turn.’

Bar’s announcement was welcomed by the opposition, while Netanyahu’s allies blasted the outgoing Shin Bet chief.

“Ronen Bar made the correct and appropriate decision. This is what taking responsibility looks like,” tweeted Opposition Leader Yair Lapid.

“Of those responsible for the greatest failure in the country’s history, only one is still holding on to his chair,” he added, referring to Netanyahu. “The people of Israel deserve elections now.”

Lapid was echoed by The Democrats party chief Yair Golan, who tweeted, “Thank you Ronen. Netanyahu, it’s now your turn.”

National Unity party chief Benny Gantz said that “Ronen and the Shin Bet failed on October 7. Ronen fulfilled his responsibility throughout the war in the face of all challenges and in all arenas. He did the same today in his decision to resign.”

Gantz added that it is “appropriate and correct that the political echelon also fulfills the same responsibility.”

Right-wing lawmakers took a different approach, continuing their attacks on the veteran security official.

“Ronen Bar is not doing anyone a favor by leaving. As of April 10, Ronen Bar is the illegal head of the Shin Bet, and in a civilized country, he would already have been handcuffed and detained with rats, both for rebelling against the elected government that legally fired him, and also to be asked difficult questions about other serious matters,” tweeted Likud MK Ariel Kallner — declaring that “the struggle against the crazy Israeli deep state has not even begun.”

Fellow Likud MK Avichai Boaron called Bar “rude, arrogant [and] smug,” asserting that such an approach led to October 7, while far-right Noam party MK Avi Maoz declared, “You didn’t resign. You were fired.”

Lazar Berman, Nava Freiberg, and Emanuel Fabian contributed to this report.