The head of Israel's security agency, Ronen Bar, has announced his resignation, effective from 15 June, after accepting failures during the 7 October attacks.
Bar, Chief of the Shin Ben, was dismissed unanimously from the Israeli cabinet nearly three months before this announcement.
The dismissal was originally set for 10 April, but was halted by the High Court, drawing the ire of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and sparking a battle of wills between Bar and the PM.
Last week, Bar said in a sworn affidavit that Netanyahu expected “personal loyalty", which Netanyahu labelled as a “false affidavit”.
“It was made clear to me that in the event of a constitutional crisis, I would be expected to obey the prime minister rather than the Supreme Court,” Bar wrote.
In a speech honouring fallen Shin Bet agents, Bar acknowledged his failures on 7 October and reiterated his loyalty to Israel.
“My love for the homeland and my loyalty to the state are the foundation of every decision I have made in my professional life," he said.
“After years on many fronts, in one night, on the southern front, the sky fell. All systems collapsed. The Shin Bet also failed to provide a warning [on October 7].”
Itamar Ben Gvir, the far-right Minister of National Security and supporter of Netanyahu, said on social media, “Good riddance” in response to Bar stepping down, but he received support from opposition politicians with Yair Lapid, the head of the opposition, writing on X, “Ronen Bar made the right and honourable decision. This is what taking responsibility looks like.”
