Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, in a letter released by his office, described Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara's rejection of the dismissal of Shin Bet director Ronen Bar as a "dangerous betrayal" and an "attempt to usurp the government."
"Your attempt to assume the government's authority over security matters in times of war and under the guise of legal advice is a dangerous betrayal—and not the first—of the government's express authority," reads the letter Netanyahu sent to the attorney general on Monday.
Baharav-Miara warned last night, after Netanyahu announced his intention to dismiss Bar, that this was an "unprecedented" act and expressed concern that the process could be "tainted by illegality and conflict of interest."
"Your insinuations of suspected illegality and conflict of interest constitute a complete perversion of justice," the Israeli president added in the letter.
Furthermore, the Israeli prime minister views the legal advisor's remarks, in which she stated that the head of the Shin Bet "is not a position of personal trust serving the prime minister," as "manipulation."
“The Prime Minister and the Government have never required a duty of personal trust. It is the legislature that determined that the service is provided to the government, and the Prime Minister is the one in charge of the head of the service. Therefore, to fulfill their role, the Government and the Prime Minister must trust the head of the service and their ability to lead it successfully in the face of urgent challenges. This is the trust that has been damaged,” he states.
The executive branch's vote to remove Bar is scheduled for this Wednesday, despite the attorney general's warning that this measure cannot be implemented until the "factual and legal grounds" underlying the decision are reviewed.
In the letter, Netanyahu states that the attorney general is "invited to the next government meeting," where she will be able to express her legal position before a decision is made.
The Shin Bet is currently investigating—following the Attorney General's order—several former advisors and spokespersons for Netanyahu's office in connection with the "Qatargate" scandal, which implicates them in alleged financial ties to Qatar.
In the letter, the Israeli prime minister asserts that "the intention to dismiss the Shin Bet chief did not arise in the context of the investigation" and believes it was "invented to undermine the authority of the prime minister and the Israeli government" so that they could not discuss Ronen Bar's dismissal in the future.