Jerusalem, May 22 Israel's Supreme Court has ruled that the government's decision in March to dismiss Ronen Bar, head of Israel's Shin Bet domestic security agency, was "illegal and contrary to law".
The dismissal was carried out "through an improper process and in violation of the law," the three-judge panel wrote on Wednesday in their ruling as quoted by Xinhua news agency.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has a conflict of interest due to an ongoing investigation into a case dubbed "Qatar-Gate," the ruling added.
A blame game over the failure to prevent the October 7 Hamas-led attack has led to a standoff between Bar and Netanyahu, and the "Qatar-Gate" case, which probes into the alleged undisclosed contacts between Netanyahu's close aides and the Qatari government, has added to the tensions between the two sides.
In March, Netanyahu announced Bar's dismissal, citing a loss of confidence in him, Xinhua news agency reported.
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and opposition leaders appealed the dismissal to the Supreme Court, which then froze the decision, pending further review.
In late April, Bar announced that he would resign on June 15.
The next day, the Israeli government cancelled its decision to fire Bar, and asked the Supreme Court to dismiss petitions challenging Bar's dismissal, arguing they had become moot following his resignation.
The contract allegedly aimed to promote Qatari interests from within Netanyahu’s office. Qatar has denied the accusations, calling them baseless.
The court also ruled that the Netanyahu government failed to submit the dismissal to the relevant advisory committee and did not conduct a legally required hearing for Bar. It found no factual basis for the decision.
Justice Yitzhak Amit, president of the Supreme Court, wrote that Netanyahu was in a state of conflict of interest at the time of the decision, due to investigations involving his aides in the "QatarGate" case and a separate scandal involving leaked classified documents.
"This situation becomes even more severe," Amit wrote, "given that the Prime Minister himself has repeatedly acknowledged that these investigations could affect, among other things, his personal and political status."
Since Bar is directly involved in the investigations, "terminating his tenure could significantly impact their course," the judge added.
"Accordingly," Amit concluded, "the court finds that the Prime Minister is in a conflict of interest that prevents him from interfering in the termination of the Shin Bet director's position."
Channel 12 reported that the ruling effectively allows Netanyahu to announce a successor.
On March 20, the Israeli government announced Bar's dismissal as of April 10. The court later issued an injunction preventing his removal or replacement pending its review of petitions filed by opposition lawmakers.
Despite the court order, Bar announced on April 28 that he would voluntarily step down on June 15.
The move comes as the Israeli army has pursued a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 53,700 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
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