Ex-Shin Bet Official Criticizes Ronen Bar's Lawsuit, Urges Focus on Oct. 7 Inquiry

Former senior Shin Bet official Yossi Amrosi has criticized the defamation lawsuit filed by former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Amrosi, a research fellow at the Misgav National Security Institute, believes the lawsuit is unlikely to reach court due to the Prime Minister's immunity, which Netanyahu is reportedly unwilling to waive. Amrosi also suggested that some of the statements Bar considers defamatory were made by officials in Netanyahu's office, not the Prime Minister himself, which he argues has implications for personal responsibility.

Amrosi asserted that while Netanyahu bears ministerial responsibility for the long-standing policy of containment towards Hamas, this policy was heavily influenced by the security establishment's opposition to occupying Gaza. He argued that even when security leaders, including Bar, recommended actions against Hamas, these focused on targeted assassinations rather than a decisive military operation to dismantle the organization. Amrosi stated that he never heard any security chief or defense minister recommend occupying Gaza to eliminate Hamas, only suggesting further rounds of conflict or targeted strikes, which he believes has trapped Israel in a cycle of escalation.

Reflecting on the events leading up to October 7, Amrosi acknowledged Bar's years of service but criticized the Shin Bet's interpretation of warning signs. He stated that the Shin Bet's role is not just to issue warnings but to activate the entire response system. Amrosi highlighted significant indicators on the night of October 6-7, such as intelligence about senior Hamas figures and families descending into tunnels and the exposure of missile launch sites, which he believes Bar and the Chief of Staff failed to grasp, leading to a catastrophic failure.

Given these points, Amrosi advised Bar to prepare for a commission of inquiry into the October 7 events rather than pursuing the defamation suit, which he considers to have little legal weight. He also addressed Bar's claim of being unable to contact Netanyahu on the night of the attack, dismissing it as implausible and stating that numerous channels exist to reach the Prime Minister, suggesting that if Bar had understood the severity, he would have traveled to Jerusalem.