In February 2023, the first confrontation erupted. It was reported in the media that the head of Shin Bet, Ronen Bar, warned Itamar Ben-Gvir about the consequences of his actions—visiting the Temple Mount and other provocations. In response, two MKs from Otzma Yehudit launched an attack. Almog Cohen shot back: “His role is to thwart terror. Let him do what he’s supposed to do.” Tzvika Fogel accused: “Meanwhile, we’re counting bodies.”
At that time, two years ago, this was considered an unusual attack. In Ben-Gvir and his advisors’ WhatsApp group, this conversation took place: Eli Feldstein, then Ben-Gvir’s spokesperson and now the main suspect in the classified documents affair and the Qatar-gate case, forwarded a message from the Shin Bet head’s spokesperson: “Is this the strategy? Letting him attack us? We respect the minister a lot, including in discussions. He can ask him. What Cohen is doing is inappropriate, disrespectful, and irrelevant. In my opinion, it only harms you. What’s going on?? Counting bodies???? Dancing on blood is the worst.” Ben-Gvir immediately replied: Tell them they are one hundred percent right, I’ll handle it.
Is it time to miss the “moderate” Ben-Gvir from two years ago—somewhat like the strange nostalgia for Benjamin Netanyahu “before he changed”—or should we realize: they were always like this, but now, having signed off on the greatest security failure in the country’s history, they simply have nothing to lose?
Next Monday, the Supreme Court will discuss the government’s decision to dismiss the head of Shin Bet. It’s hard to overstate the importance of this hearing. The panel appointed by the Chief Justice (Itzhak Amit, Noam Solberg, Dafna Barak-Erez) has two good grounds not to make a final decision. First, to ask the Attorney General to complete the review on the conflict of interest issue: does the Qatar-gate investigation disqualify Netanyahu from firing the Shin Bet head? Similar to the submarine affair, Netanyahu’s close associates are deeply involved, but there is no evidence Netanyahu was aware that his advisers worked for Qatar. Miraculously, Netanyahu manages not to know anything problematic or at least leaves no traces.
Until now, the police have shown very little enthusiasm for advancing this case. It took a long time before Orich and Feldstein were interrogated, after which no practical restrictions were imposed on them. Nevertheless, even a prime minister who wants to suppress an investigation against his advisers is a prime minister with a conflict of interest. The Supreme Court will have to decide whether this conflict of interest is significant enough to justify continued harm to the proper working relationship between the Prime Minister and the head of Shin Bet.
The Attorney General also has another considerable argument. In the classified documents affair, there is direct evidence of Netanyahu’s involvement. There too, the head of Shin Bet was responsible for the investigation, after which Netanyahu launched a smear campaign against him.
There is also a procedural consideration. The decision to dismiss Bar should have first passed the Senior Appointments Committee, which approved his appointment. The government did not approach the committee. In other words, the Supreme Court has broad discretion to extend the injunction preventing the dismissal of the Shin Bet head beyond the government’s set deadline (April 10).
Netanyahu has already interviewed a controversial candidate for the position of head of Shin Bet. Shalom Ben-Hanan has had a long and rich career in Shin Bet. His public statements about the support Sinwar receives from the protest movement are a glaring red flag. Appointing someone with these views to a position where he can easily suppress protest is an Erdoğan-like scenario. Will the Supreme Court be deterred by coalition threats not to implement the ruling that the Shin Bet head will not be replaced by April 10, or will it back the last investigative body left in the country? Such backing would force Netanyahu to at least appoint a Shin Bet head who does not owe his appointment entirely to the Prime Minister.