Ronen Bar, who headed the Shin Bet during the October 7 massacre, has issued an unusual public response to accusations leveled against him by Prime Minister Netanyahu, announcing that he will file a defamation lawsuit against the prime minister and demand the declassification of sensitive documents.
The former head of Israel's internal security service, which bore primary intelligence responsibility for monitoring the Gaza arena, released a sharp statement in response to Netanyahu's earlier remarks today. The prime minister had denied reports of receiving warnings from Arab sources before the attack and pointed an accusatory finger at Bar for failures on October 7.
In his statement earlier today, Netanyahu's office said: "In recent weeks, the left-wing media has been conducting a despicable and false campaign designed to shift all of Ronen Bar's failures and crimes on the eve of October 7 onto Prime Minister Netanyahu."
The statement continued: "On the night of October 7, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar held numerous conversations with then-Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and Aman head Haliva, in which they discussed all the warning signs."
"Despite this, Ronen Bar decided not to call and update the prime minister, not to alert the standby squads and IDF forces in the field, not to evacuate the Nova festival, and only to send a limited Takila team (which proves he knew of a real danger)," the prime minister's statement said.
In response, Bar announced through his attorneys: "Former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar intends to file a defamation lawsuit against Benjamin Netanyahu and demands the disclosure of testimony and documents related to information provided to the prime minister before October 7. Bar demands disclosure of documents and Netanyahu's meeting schedule with the security establishment and foreign officials. He will summon for testimony Netanyahu's office staff and aides who assisted and are assisting him in the manipulative campaign."
Bar went on to accuse: "Prime Minister Netanyahu has launched an unbridled incitement campaign disconnected from reality against the former Shin Bet chief. After three years of refusing to acknowledge his responsibility and preventing the public by every means from having a state commission of inquiry, he began selectively publishing documents in a manipulative manner, inverting them from their true context. Now, as evidence of warnings he received before the massacre begins to surface, he is trying to deflect fire from himself by hurling accusations at those who warned him in real time."
Bar then laid out his version of events: "It will not be surprising when it becomes clear that, in his capacity as Shin Bet chief, Bar warned the prime minister of an impending disaster in an unprecedented manner, and that the prime minister ignored these warnings, as well as recommendations to restore deterrence and strengthen the border. Until now, Ronen Bar believed it proper to wait for the establishment of the commission to which the public is entitled and to which the bereaved families are entitled. However, the string of lies cannot be allowed to continue. Lies, distortion of facts, manipulation of protocols, and dissemination of misleading information to the public, this is what the prime minister does when the scope of warnings he received before the October 7 massacre begins to become clear. Therefore, the former Shin Bet chief has instructed his attorneys to file a defamation lawsuit against the prime minister and to summon for testimony anyone who distorted, falsified documents, and spread false and defamatory information against him."
