Ronen Bar
Israeli intelligence officer; director of the Shin Bet from 2021 until June 2025
| Ronen Bar
| |
|---|---|
| Image |  Ronen Bar, October 2021. Photo: Amos Ben Gershom/GPO, CC BY-SA 3.0 |
| Nationality | Israeli |
| Occupation | Intelligence officer; director of the Shin Bet |
| Known for | Director of the Shin Bet (13 October 2021–June 2025) |
| Education | Tel Aviv University (political science and philosophy); Harvard University (public administration)[1] |
| Predecessor | Nadav Argaman |
Ronen Bar is an Israeli intelligence officer who directed the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security service, from 13 October 2021 until June 2025. He was appointed by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and succeeded Nadav Argaman.[2] His tenure ended after the government of Benjamin Netanyahu voted to dismiss him, a decision the High Court of Justice later held to have been unlawful.[3]
Career
According to The Guardian, Bar served in the elite special forces unit Sayeret Matkal before obtaining degrees in political science and philosophy from Tel Aviv University and a master's degree in public administration from Harvard University. He then joined the Shin Bet and rose through the ranks of its operations division, which the newspaper described as managing logistics and support for the service's frontline teams.[1]
At the handover ceremony on 13 October 2021, Bar said that Iran and its proxies would be at the centre of the service's work and that it would act against them within Israel, abroad and in cyberspace; he also said the service would review how far to support the police, rather than become directly involved, in tackling the wave of murders in Israel's Arab community. Bennett, who had nominated him on 1 September 2021, said he had chosen Bar because of his readiness to take the initiative.[2]
7 October 2023 and the Shin Bet inquiry
Bar was among the first senior security officials to accept responsibility for the failure to prevent the Hamas-led attack of 7 October 2023, and made clear that he intended to resign; The Guardian reported that associates said he stayed in post to work towards the release of hostages and to protect the Shin Bet from political manoeuvres.[1] On 4 March 2025 the Shin Bet published its own inquiry. According to Israel Hayom, Bar said that “had the Shin Bet acted differently, both professionally and administratively”, the attack could have been prevented.[4] See Shin Bet for the findings reported.
Disputes with the Netanyahu government
The Guardian reported that Bar became a target of far-right politicians after warning of the threat of “Jewish terrorism” from parts of the settler movement, and after warning the National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, that police action in East Jerusalem was producing a feeling of collective punishment among Palestinian residents. It also reported that in March 2023, during protests over the government's judicial plans, Bar told Netanyahu there was a link “between security threats and the social situation in Israel”, according to remarks reported by Israeli media.[1]
Dismissal and resignation, 2025
On a Thursday night in March 2025 the cabinet voted unanimously to dismiss Bar; the court froze the decision pending a hearing.[3] The Guardian described him as the first Shin Bet director ever to be dismissed. Netanyahu cited a “persistent loss of professional and personal trust”; Bar denied this and, in a letter, said the dismissal was driven mainly by Netanyahu's “personal interests”.[1] The Jerusalem Post reported that Netanyahu's affidavit and the government argued that a breach of trust, which they said began on 7 October 2023, was unbridgeable; petitioners argued that the timing, close to the first security investigation of figures close to Netanyahu in the “leaked documents” case, showed that the motive was not professional.[3]
In a sworn affidavit submitted to the court on 21 April 2025, Bar said that Netanyahu had expected the Shin Bet to act against civilians involved in protests against the government and to identify protest funders; that he had been told that in a constitutional crisis he should obey the prime minister and not the Supreme Court; and that he had been pressed to give the court an opinion that Netanyahu could not testify in his criminal trial, which he refused to do. The Prime Minister's Office said the affidavit contained lies.[5]
On 21 May 2025 the High Court ruled that the government had violated its own procedures, which required the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee to vet such a decision, and the principles governing conflicts of interest, in trying to dismiss Bar. According to the Jerusalem Post, the court treated the “Qatargate” investigation, which the Shin Bet was conducting with the police, as a temporary special limit on the power to dismiss him. All the justices accepted that the government had the power to dismiss the director; Justice Noam Sohlberg, in the minority on whether a ruling should be issued at all, agreed with the analysis. Bar had by then announced that he would resign on 15 June.[3] Ynet reported the court's finding that the decision was taken through an improper process, without a factual basis and without a proper hearing, and that Netanyahu had a conflict of interest.[6]
Bar's deputy, identified only as “S”, took over as acting director at midnight on 15 June 2025.[7] David Zini, appointed by Netanyahu after legal challenges, took office on 5 October 2025.[8] Bar later continued to feature in reporting on the Qatargate affair, including his reported statement that it raised “the gravest suspicions of severe harm to state security”.[9]
Offices held
| Office | Start | End | Predecessor | Successor | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director, Shin Bet | 13 October 2021 | June 2025 | Nadav Argaman | ‘S’ (acting); David Zini from 5 October 2025 | [2][7][8] |
See also
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Jason Burke, Who is Ronen Bar, the sacked chief of Israel’s Shin Bet security service?, The Guardian, 21 March 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Yonah Jeremy Bob, New Shin Bet head: Ready to take on Iran, Israeli-Arab violence, The Jerusalem Post, 13 October 2021, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Yonah Jeremy Bob and Sarah Ben-Nun, High Court rules gov’t decision to fire Ronen Bar was illegal, The Jerusalem Post, 21 May 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Lilach Shoval, Failure in handling intelligence: Shin Bet investigation of October 7 massacre released, Israel Hayom, 4 March 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Netanel Bendel, PM wanted me to obey him, not court and to surveil protest leaders, Shin Bet head tells court, Ynet, April 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Netael Bandel, Supreme Court Rules: Ronen Bar’s Dismissal Illegal, Netanyahu Had Conflict of Interest, Ynet, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Yonah Jeremy Bob, ‘S’ takes over as acting Shin Bet chief from Ronen Bar, The Jerusalem Post, 15 June 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Keshet Neev, with Sarah Ben-Nun and Yonah Jeremy Bob, Cabinet appoints Zini as next Shin Bet chief following controversy, The Jerusalem Post, 30 September 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Jerusalem Post staff, Shin Bet to change ‘Qatargate’ opinion says Urich, Feldstein didn’t harm state security - report, The Jerusalem Post, 7 May 2026, accessed 11 November 2026.