Ex-IDF spokesman: Netanyahu genius at deflecting blame

Former IDF spokesman Avi Benayahu responded Wednesday to the massive defamation lawsuit filed by former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, predicting that the prime minister would find a way to sidestep the core allegations.

"Netanyahu is a terrifying genius," Benayahu wrote. "He will focus attention in Ronen Bar's lawsuit on the question of whether Ronen Bar had his red phone number or his black phone number. He'll continue with the whining and wailing of 'why didn't anyone wake me up,' as if he were Sonic the Hedgehog or Spider-Man."

"The lawsuit teaches about ignoring Shin Bet assessments and recommendations, about refusing to approve thwarting operations, and about irresponsible conduct that sanctifies politics over security," Benayahu added.

Earlier Wednesday, Bar filed the defamation suit against Netanyahu in the Tel Aviv District Court, demanding NIS 3 million in damages.

Bar's complaint was filed without knowing whether Netanyahu will invoke his immunity. The suit comes after the prime minister posted on social media about "the failures and crimes" of Ronen Bar, claiming Bar "knew of a real danger" and "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 Tequila team."

According to the complaint, Bar presented initiatives to thwart senior Hamas figures, but the warnings and plans were not accepted by the prime minister. The suit emphasizes that its purpose is not Bar's attempt to shirk his responsibility, but rather Netanyahu's defamatory publication, in which the PM is trying to shift his own responsibility onto Bar's shoulders.

"As the head of the service, I bear responsibility for the fact that the Shin Bet failed in its part in providing the required intelligence about the October 7 attack and its timing," a statement from Bar said. "Accordingly, bowing my head before the bereaved families, I resigned from my position. We fought, we thwarted senior Hamas figures in Gaza and Lebanon, and we returned hostages in daring Shin Bet operations and determined negotiations."

Bar added that he waited three years for the establishment of a commission of inquiry that would finally expose the Shin Bet's actions, alongside the failures, "in the face of an ongoing blood libel. In light of the unbridled outburst of a prime minister, I decided not to remain silent and to show the public the motives behind such improper behavior."

The complaint details how in the months preceding the disaster, Bar warned the prime minister almost every week about an imminent multi-arena outbreak, with explicit emphasis on the Gaza Strip and the Tishrei holidays. Bar presented initiatives to thwart senior Hamas figures, but according to him, these warnings and plans were met with cancellation or disregard by Netanyahu.

The suit further alleges that, for year, Netanyahu led a policy of "quiet at any price" in the Gaza Strip, which included explicit directives to maintain quiet in Gaza, to postpone confrontations, to leave Gaza as a secondary arena, and to preserve Hamas as the governing address. "This policy included funding Hamas's military buildup through funds from Qatar, contrary to the Shin Bet's position for years, and was based on determinations that Hamas was deterred, in complete contradiction to Bar's position. Every attempt by Bar to influence policy-setting was bluntly blocked by the prime minister," the complaint states.