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‘If only you had called in time’: Netanyahu counters Ronen Bar amid Oct 7 warning row
Netanyahu’s attack comes hours after Bar filed a defamation suit against him over claims that Bar did not inform about Oct 7 attack.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday hit back at former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, who filed a defamation lawsuit against the leader. The suit was filed over claims that Bar was aware of the threat of a Hamas attack hours before October 7, 2023, but chose not to inform him.
In a post on X, Netanyahu refuted Bar’s claim that he did not have the prime minister’s number.
“Ronen Bar, who saw the warning signs on the night of October 7th and didn't call me, is saying today that he didn't have my phone number. Ronen, are you serious? After all, you had my red phone number, and you could have immediately called me, as all heads of the security system do,” he wrote.
“The Shin Bet security agents, your subordinates, who are with me 24/7, could have reached me within minutes. How many lives we could have saved if only you had called in time,” he added.
Ronen Bar files defamation suit against Netanyahu
Netanyahu’s sharp attack comes hours after Bar filed a defamation suit against him over claims that Bar did not inform about the Hamas attack on October 7, despite having prior information.
Bar, in its NIS 3 million suit (approximately $975,000), claims that he and the Shin Bet took several steps in the early hours of October 7 in response to concerns of an impending attack, including informing Netanyahu’s military secretariat at 3:55 am.
The former intelligence chief also details a long list of warnings he says he issued to Netanyahu in the months leading up to the October 7 attack, according to the Times of Israel.
According to Bar, he had a conversation with Netanyahu on a secure line on July 23, 2023, in which he said “I am passing you a strategic warning for war,” and that Israel’s enemies viewed the internal political divisions in Israel as an opportunity, adding that the only way to prevent it was a preemptive strike.
At a working meeting on August 21, Bar said he highlighted a “dramatic escalation” in attacks being directed from the Gaza Strip, stressing that “without offensive activity in Gaza, it would not be possible to change the reality.”
He further claimed that an “unusual message” from the enemy was received on September 14, 2023, and that he informed Netanyahu about it, though he did not disclose its contents, according to the Times of Israel.
During discussions on September 17, Bar said he warned of an unavoidable “vector of conflict” and stressed the urgent need to strengthen deterrence.
Bar also alleged that on October 1, he warned of a peak in the intentions of terrorist groups to launch attacks, cautioning that Israel could be drawn into a round of fighting against its will before the holiday period ended. He said he recommended targeted assassinations of key terror leaders, but the proposed operations were ultimately not carried out.
However, he accepted that Shin Bet failed in providing the required intelligence on the October 7 attack, which is why he said that he resigned from his position.
“As the head of the service, I bear responsibility for the fact that the Shin Bet failed in part in providing the required intelligence on the October 7 attack, and its timing. Accordingly, lowering my head in front of the bereaved families, I resigned from my position,” Bar said.
“I waited quietly for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry that will finally expose the Shin Bet’s actions, along with the failures, in the face of an ongoing blood libel. In light of the prime minister’s unbridled outburst, I decided not to remain silent,” he added.
Netanyahu’s accusations against Bar come amid reports that the prime minister had received warnings of a possible attack in the days and weeks before Hamas launched its assault on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. The attack killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 others taken hostage, triggering the war.
(With inputs from Times of Israel)
