Israel PM, security agency fight it out in public
By AFP
March 14, 2025
Shin Bet director Ronen Bar (C) is flanked by the then armed forces chief and the head of the Mossad intelligence agency in the situation room during an exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners in January. - Copyright AFP Sebastien ST-JEAN
Cyril Julien
Israel’s premier and the head of internal security are engaged in a very public spat over reforms to the agency, accused of failing to prevent the October 7, 2023 attack.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar of resorting to “blackmail” and “threats” over the proposed reforms.
On Thursday, Bar’s predecessor Nadav Argaman added oil to the fire in an interview he gave to Israel’s privately owned Channel 12 television.
“I keep everything private that occurred one-on-one between me and the prime minister. It is quite clear that I have a great deal of knowledge which I could put to use, but I do not,” Argaman said.
“If I conclude that the prime minister has decided to act in contravention of the law, then I will have no choice — I will reveal everything I know… in order to preserve the importance of relations between the Shin Bet chief and the premier.”
The former security chief added: “I’m very troubled by the fact that the prime minister is deliberately damaging Israeli society and causing friction within it in order to rule.”
Netanyahu responded on social media platform X, accusing Argaman of engaging in “live, on-air extortion against a sitting prime minister” and of making “Mafia-style criminal threats”.
He also accused Bar of being behind what he called “part of an ongoing campaign of threats and media leaks” aimed at preventing him “from making the necessary decisions to restore the Shin Bet after its devastating failure on October 7.”
– ‘Baseless’ accusation –
The domestic security agency is formally known as the Internal Security Agency.
On March 4, it acknowledged its failure in preventing Hamas’s 2023 attack, saying that if it had acted differently the deadliest day in Israel’s history could have been averted.
In a rare move, the agency has now issued a statement about the political controversy, denouncing “a serious accusation against the head of a state agency in Israel” and calling it “baseless”.
The statement said “Ronen Bar dedicates all his time to security matters, efforts to bring back the hostages and defending democracy”.
Bar has led the Shin Bet since 2021, and his relations with Netanyahu were strained even before the Hamas attack, notably over proposed judicial reforms that split the country in the lead-up.
Relations became even more strained after the March 4 release of the internal Shin Bet report on the attack.
After admitting responsibility for failures, Bar added that in order to truly understand how the unprecedented attack was not stopped, there needed to be a broader probe into the role of Israel’s security and political elements and the cooperation between them.
The report said that “a policy of quiet had enabled Hamas to undergo massive military buildup”.
Netanyahu has demanded the departure of Bar, whose mandate expires in October 2026.
But Israeli media have reported his refusal to quit, meaning the premier may have to fire him at a crucial time when the war in Gaza could resume if talks underway in Qatar fail to prolong a January ceasefire.
– Agency independence –
In the meantime, Bar’s responsibilities appear to have been curtailed.
Media reports say he was excluded from a security cabinet meeting and also the Israeli negotiating delegation in Doha, which is being led by Bar’s deputy, known only as ‘M’.
Bar had been involved in previous sessions of indirect negotiations with Hamas, including those that led to the ceasefire.
Netanyahu and Bar also disagree on who should replace the current Shin Bet chief.
Bar wants ‘M’ to succeed him, as is customary, but Netanyahu wants the final say on the appointment.
Media reports say everything boils down to Shin Bet independence in the face of a premier tempted to appoint someone loyal who would act in his political interests, rather than those of the country.
The Israeli opposition has already denounced government proceedings to dismiss Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, a vocal critic of Netanyahu who is also the government’s legal adviser.
Baharav-Miara is a fierce defender of the judiciary’s independence who has often taken positions that clashed with those of Netanyahu’s government.
When the premier returned to power in 2022 after being ousted, she warned that his new government’s legislative programme threatened to turn Israel into a “democracy in name, but not in essence”.
By AFP
March 14, 2025
Shin Bet director Ronen Bar (C) is flanked by the then armed forces chief and the head of the Mossad intelligence agency in the situation room during an exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners in January. - Copyright AFP Sebastien ST-JEAN
Cyril Julien
Israel’s premier and the head of internal security are engaged in a very public spat over reforms to the agency, accused of failing to prevent the October 7, 2023 attack.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar of resorting to “blackmail” and “threats” over the proposed reforms.
On Thursday, Bar’s predecessor Nadav Argaman added oil to the fire in an interview he gave to Israel’s privately owned Channel 12 television.
“I keep everything private that occurred one-on-one between me and the prime minister. It is quite clear that I have a great deal of knowledge which I could put to use, but I do not,” Argaman said.
“If I conclude that the prime minister has decided to act in contravention of the law, then I will have no choice — I will reveal everything I know… in order to preserve the importance of relations between the Shin Bet chief and the premier.”
The former security chief added: “I’m very troubled by the fact that the prime minister is deliberately damaging Israeli society and causing friction within it in order to rule.”
Netanyahu responded on social media platform X, accusing Argaman of engaging in “live, on-air extortion against a sitting prime minister” and of making “Mafia-style criminal threats”.
He also accused Bar of being behind what he called “part of an ongoing campaign of threats and media leaks” aimed at preventing him “from making the necessary decisions to restore the Shin Bet after its devastating failure on October 7.”
– ‘Baseless’ accusation –
The domestic security agency is formally known as the Internal Security Agency.
On March 4, it acknowledged its failure in preventing Hamas’s 2023 attack, saying that if it had acted differently the deadliest day in Israel’s history could have been averted.
In a rare move, the agency has now issued a statement about the political controversy, denouncing “a serious accusation against the head of a state agency in Israel” and calling it “baseless”.
The statement said “Ronen Bar dedicates all his time to security matters, efforts to bring back the hostages and defending democracy”.
Bar has led the Shin Bet since 2021, and his relations with Netanyahu were strained even before the Hamas attack, notably over proposed judicial reforms that split the country in the lead-up.
Relations became even more strained after the March 4 release of the internal Shin Bet report on the attack.
After admitting responsibility for failures, Bar added that in order to truly understand how the unprecedented attack was not stopped, there needed to be a broader probe into the role of Israel’s security and political elements and the cooperation between them.
The report said that “a policy of quiet had enabled Hamas to undergo massive military buildup”.
Netanyahu has demanded the departure of Bar, whose mandate expires in October 2026.
But Israeli media have reported his refusal to quit, meaning the premier may have to fire him at a crucial time when the war in Gaza could resume if talks underway in Qatar fail to prolong a January ceasefire.
– Agency independence –
In the meantime, Bar’s responsibilities appear to have been curtailed.
Media reports say he was excluded from a security cabinet meeting and also the Israeli negotiating delegation in Doha, which is being led by Bar’s deputy, known only as ‘M’.
Bar had been involved in previous sessions of indirect negotiations with Hamas, including those that led to the ceasefire.
Netanyahu and Bar also disagree on who should replace the current Shin Bet chief.
Bar wants ‘M’ to succeed him, as is customary, but Netanyahu wants the final say on the appointment.
Media reports say everything boils down to Shin Bet independence in the face of a premier tempted to appoint someone loyal who would act in his political interests, rather than those of the country.
The Israeli opposition has already denounced government proceedings to dismiss Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, a vocal critic of Netanyahu who is also the government’s legal adviser.
Baharav-Miara is a fierce defender of the judiciary’s independence who has often taken positions that clashed with those of Netanyahu’s government.
When the premier returned to power in 2022 after being ousted, she warned that his new government’s legislative programme threatened to turn Israel into a “democracy in name, but not in essence”.
By Ramzy Baroud
March 13, 2025
Source: Originally published by Z. Feel free to share widely.
“The higher the monkey climbs, the more he shows his tail,” warns a timeless Chinese proverb. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, seems to neither heed the lessons of history nor the wisdom of such folk sayings.
By leading a vilification campaign against Egypt, the Israeli leader is further exposing his country’s vulnerabilities. This is yet another example of Israel’s inability to alter the political reality in Gaza, 17 months after it launched its devastating war on the Strip.
By targeting Egypt, Israel aims to project an image of prowess, and that it is unafraid to confront the most populous Arab nation. Yet, in doing so, it inadvertently exposes its own weaknesses. This behavior is wholly consistent with Netanyahu’s legacy of running away forward.
Long before the October 7, 2023, war, Netanyahu was riding a wave of political euphoria. At the time, his relentless climb to greater heights seemed justified. His Global South diplomacy was reversing decades of Israeli isolation, and his success in gaining international recognition without paying a significant political price earned him immense popularity at home.
In Israel, Netanyahu kept winning one election after another. His latest right-wing extremist coalition secured a comfortable majority in the Knesset facing little pushback. The extremists were poised to transform Israel from within, reconfigure the region, and, with the usual unconditional support from the United States, position Israel as a global power commanding respect and authority.
However, October 7 and Israel’s catastrophic failure on all fronts exposed Netanyahu’s tail as a failed leader. The crisis quickly manifested in global outrage as Israel carried out a genocidal war on the Palestinians, killing and wounding over 160,000 people in the course of 15 months. The Israeli tail was further exposed as the once-confident leader, who tirelessly promised to reshape the Middle East to fit Israel’s agenda, became a wanted criminal by the International Criminal Court on November 21, while his country faced investigations for the crime of genocide by the International Court of Justice.
Yet Netanyahu climbed even higher, doubling down on his approach. He insisted on continuing the war in Gaza, maintaining a military presence in Lebanon, and carrying out frequent and massive bombing campaigns in Syria.
Bravado aside, Netanyahu has still failed to achieve any of Israel’s stated objectives through the devastating war on Gaza—a war that has also cost Israel unprecedented losses and casualties. Meanwhile, the divisions among the political and military elites are deepening. The latest manifestation of this is the firing of many top military brass and the reordering of the army to align with Netanyahu’s political ambitions.
The more Israel’s vulnerabilities are exposed, the more Netanyahu and his allies intensify their threats—not only against Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria but also against Egypt. In fact, Egypt, which is not a party to the war and has been one of three mediators in ceasefire talks, has become the primary target of Israel’s new strategy aimed at ethnically cleansing Gaza’s population into the Sinai desert.
But how did this come about?
Egypt was hardly a factor in the Israeli war on Gaza. Yet, as the war on Gaza dragged on, with no possibility of a “total victory,” top Israeli officials began pointing fingers at Egypt.
The idea of taking over the Philadelphi Corridor, separating the city of Rafah in southern Gaza from the Egyptian border was first floated by extremist Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Others, including Netanyahu himself, soon began parroting the same words.
In the media, the language took an even more foreboding turn, with some accusing Egypt of arming Hamas, or of not doing enough to stop the flow of weapons to the Palestinian resistance.
When Egypt rejected Israeli accusations and refused to accommodate Israel’s wish to ethnically cleanse Gaza, Israeli leaders began talking of an Egyptian military threat, alleging that Egypt was amassing troops at its border with Israel.
The original aim of roping Egypt into Israel’s failed war was meant to create a distraction from the battlefield. Eventually, however, the distraction turned into deflection: blaming Egypt for Israel’s inability to win the war or to displace the Gaza population.
To some extent, Netanyahu has succeeded in making Egypt part of the conversation on Gaza. With US President Donald Trump repeatedly proposing the displacement of Palestinians and the takeover of Gaza, the Israeli leader felt that, finally, he had a clear American commitment to export Israel’s problems elsewhere.
Even the leader of the Israeli opposition, Yair Lapid, used Egypt to distract from his own failure to mount a serious challenge to Netanyahu’s rule. On February 25, he proposed that Cairo oversee the Strip for a number of years at a conference in Washington.
While Palestinians, Arabs, and others reacted angrily to the Israel-US ethnic cleansing schemes, few paid attention to the fact that, historically, Israel has never sought permission to ethnically cleanse Palestinians. This was as true during the 1948 Nakba as it is today. Putting pressure on Arab countries to concede to Israel’s ethnic cleansing plans is the strongest sign yet of Israel’s weakness.
Tough talk and threats aside, Israel finds itself in a more vulnerable position than at any point in its history. It is clear that Israel is now using the Arabs to mask its own vulnerabilities. And though the monkey continues to climb, his tail has never been as exposed as it is today.
ZNetwork is funded solely through the generosity of its readers.Donate
Ramzy Baroud
Ramzy Baroud is a US-Palestinian journalist, media consultant, an author, internationally-syndicated columnist, Editor of Palestine Chronicle (1999-present), former Managing Editor of London-based Middle East Eye, former Editor-in-Chief of The Brunei Times and former Deputy Managing Editor of Al Jazeera online. Baroud’s work has been published in hundreds of newspapers and journals worldwide, and is the author of six books and a contributor to many others. Baroud is also a regular guest on many television and radio programs including RT, Al Jazeera, CNN International, BBC, ABC Australia, National Public Radio, Press TV, TRT, and many other stations. Baroud was inducted as an Honorary Member into the Pi Sigma Alpha National Political Science Honor Society, NU OMEGA Chapter of Oakland University, Feb 18, 2020.
“The higher the monkey climbs, the more he shows his tail,” warns a timeless Chinese proverb. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, seems to neither heed the lessons of history nor the wisdom of such folk sayings.
By leading a vilification campaign against Egypt, the Israeli leader is further exposing his country’s vulnerabilities. This is yet another example of Israel’s inability to alter the political reality in Gaza, 17 months after it launched its devastating war on the Strip.
By targeting Egypt, Israel aims to project an image of prowess, and that it is unafraid to confront the most populous Arab nation. Yet, in doing so, it inadvertently exposes its own weaknesses. This behavior is wholly consistent with Netanyahu’s legacy of running away forward.
Long before the October 7, 2023, war, Netanyahu was riding a wave of political euphoria. At the time, his relentless climb to greater heights seemed justified. His Global South diplomacy was reversing decades of Israeli isolation, and his success in gaining international recognition without paying a significant political price earned him immense popularity at home.
In Israel, Netanyahu kept winning one election after another. His latest right-wing extremist coalition secured a comfortable majority in the Knesset facing little pushback. The extremists were poised to transform Israel from within, reconfigure the region, and, with the usual unconditional support from the United States, position Israel as a global power commanding respect and authority.
However, October 7 and Israel’s catastrophic failure on all fronts exposed Netanyahu’s tail as a failed leader. The crisis quickly manifested in global outrage as Israel carried out a genocidal war on the Palestinians, killing and wounding over 160,000 people in the course of 15 months. The Israeli tail was further exposed as the once-confident leader, who tirelessly promised to reshape the Middle East to fit Israel’s agenda, became a wanted criminal by the International Criminal Court on November 21, while his country faced investigations for the crime of genocide by the International Court of Justice.
Yet Netanyahu climbed even higher, doubling down on his approach. He insisted on continuing the war in Gaza, maintaining a military presence in Lebanon, and carrying out frequent and massive bombing campaigns in Syria.
Bravado aside, Netanyahu has still failed to achieve any of Israel’s stated objectives through the devastating war on Gaza—a war that has also cost Israel unprecedented losses and casualties. Meanwhile, the divisions among the political and military elites are deepening. The latest manifestation of this is the firing of many top military brass and the reordering of the army to align with Netanyahu’s political ambitions.
The more Israel’s vulnerabilities are exposed, the more Netanyahu and his allies intensify their threats—not only against Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria but also against Egypt. In fact, Egypt, which is not a party to the war and has been one of three mediators in ceasefire talks, has become the primary target of Israel’s new strategy aimed at ethnically cleansing Gaza’s population into the Sinai desert.
But how did this come about?
Egypt was hardly a factor in the Israeli war on Gaza. Yet, as the war on Gaza dragged on, with no possibility of a “total victory,” top Israeli officials began pointing fingers at Egypt.
The idea of taking over the Philadelphi Corridor, separating the city of Rafah in southern Gaza from the Egyptian border was first floated by extremist Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Others, including Netanyahu himself, soon began parroting the same words.
In the media, the language took an even more foreboding turn, with some accusing Egypt of arming Hamas, or of not doing enough to stop the flow of weapons to the Palestinian resistance.
When Egypt rejected Israeli accusations and refused to accommodate Israel’s wish to ethnically cleanse Gaza, Israeli leaders began talking of an Egyptian military threat, alleging that Egypt was amassing troops at its border with Israel.
The original aim of roping Egypt into Israel’s failed war was meant to create a distraction from the battlefield. Eventually, however, the distraction turned into deflection: blaming Egypt for Israel’s inability to win the war or to displace the Gaza population.
To some extent, Netanyahu has succeeded in making Egypt part of the conversation on Gaza. With US President Donald Trump repeatedly proposing the displacement of Palestinians and the takeover of Gaza, the Israeli leader felt that, finally, he had a clear American commitment to export Israel’s problems elsewhere.
Even the leader of the Israeli opposition, Yair Lapid, used Egypt to distract from his own failure to mount a serious challenge to Netanyahu’s rule. On February 25, he proposed that Cairo oversee the Strip for a number of years at a conference in Washington.
While Palestinians, Arabs, and others reacted angrily to the Israel-US ethnic cleansing schemes, few paid attention to the fact that, historically, Israel has never sought permission to ethnically cleanse Palestinians. This was as true during the 1948 Nakba as it is today. Putting pressure on Arab countries to concede to Israel’s ethnic cleansing plans is the strongest sign yet of Israel’s weakness.
Tough talk and threats aside, Israel finds itself in a more vulnerable position than at any point in its history. It is clear that Israel is now using the Arabs to mask its own vulnerabilities. And though the monkey continues to climb, his tail has never been as exposed as it is today.
ZNetwork is funded solely through the generosity of its readers.Donate
Ramzy Baroud
Ramzy Baroud is a US-Palestinian journalist, media consultant, an author, internationally-syndicated columnist, Editor of Palestine Chronicle (1999-present), former Managing Editor of London-based Middle East Eye, former Editor-in-Chief of The Brunei Times and former Deputy Managing Editor of Al Jazeera online. Baroud’s work has been published in hundreds of newspapers and journals worldwide, and is the author of six books and a contributor to many others. Baroud is also a regular guest on many television and radio programs including RT, Al Jazeera, CNN International, BBC, ABC Australia, National Public Radio, Press TV, TRT, and many other stations. Baroud was inducted as an Honorary Member into the Pi Sigma Alpha National Political Science Honor Society, NU OMEGA Chapter of Oakland University, Feb 18, 2020.
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