The Prime Minister's Office on Friday responded to criticism of the decision to appoint Maj.-Gen. David Zini as the new Shin Bet head to replace Ronen Bar, who was fired despite a High Court of Justice ruling that the decision was illegal.
The PMO stated that the designated head of the Shin Bet would not be involved in "Qatargate" investigations.
This followed the High Court ruling that said there was a conflict of interest due to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his aides' connection to the “Qatargate” scandal, which the Shin Bet is probing along with the police.
The statement said that during the war, it is inappropriate to settle for appointing an acting head of the Shin Bet, and that a permanent head of the Shin Bet must be appointed "as soon as possible."
"This is a top security priority, and any delay harms the security of the state and the security of our soldiers," the statement read.
The statement continues that a successor of Bar must be appointed by the time Bar's term ends on June 15.
According to the law, the appointment process for Zini as head of the Shin Bet will require the approval of the Grunis Committee for senior positions, and then government approval, the PMO said.
The High Court ruling
In the High Court ruling, all of the justices acknowledged that Netanyahu and the government have the power to fire the intelligence chief, but that the government's own prior decisions created a professional body to vet such decisions.
This body would be the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee, responsible for ratifying seven senior appointments, including the Shin Bet head.
In March, the cabinet voted unanimously to fire Bar. The court froze the decision pending a hearing, the results of which concluded last Wednesday.
Bar was called in to testify, and didn't show, but he did send a letter, expressing shock at the manner of his dismissal, and concern for how the process was done and what it would mean for the independence of the next Shin Bet head.
This is a developing story.
Yonah Jeremy Bob and Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.