Netanyahu Goes on the Offensive: "The Only One Acting from Personal Motives is the Head of Shin Bet"

The Prime Minister recently responded to statements by Ronen Bar in which he claimed that Netanyahu asked him to comply with unusual requests, including canceling his testimony for security reasons.

In a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office, it was said: "The lack of trust in the Shin Bet head that developed for the Prime Minister and all government members - without exception - did not stem from a question of personal loyalty, but rather from the lack of trust in his functioning after his decisive role in the October 7th failure, in which he chose not to update the political leadership, and in a series of events that subsequently undermined professional confidence in him."

According to Netanyahu: "The only one motivated by personal interests is the Shin Bet head who is clinging to his position and insisting on remaining in his role after losing the trust of the entire government. The Shin Bet head's statement is tainted by a severe conflict of interest, and unsurprisingly it comes alongside the letter from the Attorney General - who is also tainted by a severe conflict of interest.

"The discussion was about the location of the testimony, not about its existence"

The statement also said: "This announcement is full of lies, such as the claim that the Prime Minister asked the Shin Bet head to use the organization's powers inappropriately against Israeli citizens - something that never happened.

The Prime Minister spoke with the Shin Bet head about ways to enable his testimony in court in light of missile threats against Israel and the Prime Minister in particular. The discussion that took place on the matter was about the location of the testimony, not about its existence.

Indeed, the professional elements in the Shin Bet determined that the hearings should be held in the protected space at the Tel Aviv District Court and not elsewhere. And that is indeed where the hearings are taking place."