The government intends to appoint a new Shin Bet chief regardless of the directive by Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara, based on a High Court of Justice ruling earlier on Wednesday, that the prime minister was in a conflict of interest and was legally barred from doing so.
Regarding the specific issue of a conflict of interest, the attorney-general said that this relates to the ongoing investigation by the Shin Bet into ties between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s close aides and Qatar.
In a rare live press conference, Netanyahu ridiculed the speed at which the attorney-general’s directive came following the court’s ruling.
He said that Baharav-Miara herself was in a conflict of interest due to her ties to outgoing Shin Bet director Ronen Bar and a former Mossad operative who is a prosecution witness in Netanyahu’s ongoing criminal trial.
The prime minister called the court ruling and the A-G’s directive “one big show,” but stopped short of saying that he would disobey a High Court order. However, he accused it of “harming national security” by delaying the appointment of a next Shin Bet head.
Earlier in the press conference, Netanyahu criticized Democrats chairperson Yair Golan for comments on Tuesday that “sane countries do not kill children as a pastime.”
The prime minister said that Golan and other “has-beens” who supported him were “pouring gasoline on the fire of antisemitism.”
According to Netanyahu, Golan, and others were willing to do anything to remove him from power, including losing the war to Hamas.
The prime minister added that the goal of the current “Gideon’s Chariots” operation was to take complete security control over the Gaza Strip and defeat Hamas by blocking its access to humanitarian aid, which it has used to continue funding its operations.
He laid out the government’s plan, listing three phases.
The first will be to provide “basic provisions” in order to prevent a humanitarian disaster and “enable the continuation of the war” in the enclave; the second will be to form distribution points secured by the IDF but managed by private American operators; and the third will be to create a “sterile zone” in southern Gaza, to which humanitarian aid will be distributed freely.
Netanyahu said that the war would only end with the exile of Hamas leaders, disarmament of its military wing, and the release of all the hostages.
The prime minister added that Israel fully supported what he called the “Trump plan,” which he described as enabling Gazans who wished to do so to leave the Gaza Strip and settle in other countries.
Netanyahu also said that if the US reached an agreement with Iran that would prevent the enrichment of uranium, he would support it.
Lapid: 'Meaning of Netanyahu's words...Gaza occupation for many years'
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said in a video statement in response, “What Netanyahu said means the occupation of Gaza for years to come. Our children will roam the streets of Khan Yunis and Rafah, and every morning we will wake to the announcement: ‘cleared for publication’ [a declaration of casualties].”
“The Israeli taxpayer, the middle class, will have to pay for education, healthcare, and garbage collection in Gaza for the long haul. Our international standing will collapse. Our economy will suffer severe damage,” he continued.
“Netanyahu lied tonight when he said that he has been fully coordinating with the Trump administration. He does not have America’s support. He has lost US President Donald Trump’s favor and attention,” Lapid said.
“Contrary to what Netanyahu said, ‘not enriching uranium’ is not Israel’s only condition,” Lapid went on to say. “What about disassembling Tehran’s centrifuges? What about oversight? What about dismantling Iran’s ballistic missile program?”
“Regarding his remarks about Yair Golan,” he said, “the person who brought the convicted criminal and terrorist supporter [National Security Minister] Itamar Ben-Gvir into the security cabinet should not lecture us about extremism.”